Heir Apparent
by BelleDayNight
Summary: Ryu offers Kasumi an alternative to her constant running from her clan's assassins. Will she chose the offer of peace and quiet in the solitude of the mountains? And what exactly does Ryu want in return? Life as a ninja is never easy. Takes place after DOA 4 and later after DOA 5.
1. Chapter 1

**Heir Apparent**

Summary: Ryu offers Kasumi an alternative to her constant running from her clan's assassins. Will she chose the offer of peace and quiet in the solitude of the mountains? And what exactly does Ryu want in return? Life as a ninja is never easy. Takes place after DOA 4 and later after DOA 5.

* * *

**Chapter One:**

Kasumi felt faint, her vision was going gray and she knew she was running out of time. The shinobi that had chased after her had gotten too close this time. She managed to knock the four-man squad unconscious, but not before one had managed to slice a long gash into her right thigh with his blade. She managed to use her tanto blade to keep his sword from opening up her femoral artery, but just barely. The cut didn't seem so deep as to lacerate her muscles, but it was more than her typical flesh wound.

It broke her heart, because once again she recognized the ninja that had come after her with the intention of ending her life. She used to play hide and seek with the young man that had wounded her leg. His name was Suzaku. He had married his long-time girlfriend two years ago and they had a baby.

She didn't have time to dwell on the identities of the assassins. She needed to bind her leg before she lost too much blood. She was already leaving a trail of blood that even a novice ninja could track. Her clothing was in tatters. She found a tree that wasn't too difficult to climb and ripped off the pants leg from the knee down on her injured leg. She wrapped the strip around her injury and tried to bind the wound as best she could.

Kasumi's mouth felt dry and she realized that it had been two days since she'd had any water. She took her blade and slammed it into the trunk of the tree. Maybe she'd be able to find some water from the tree's veins.

She managed to salvage a few drops by licking the water she pulled out with her blade. It would have to do for now. Automatically, her hand fell to the satchel bag she had strapped over her shoulders. Within it were her most precious items. One of the most important was the journal she wrote in almost daily- at least until she ran out of ink. The entries were written as letters addressed to her brother Hayate, occasionally to her sister Ayane, and rarely Hayabusa. She knew that one day she wouldn't be able to keep up with the endless stream of assassins her former clan sent after her. One day she would fall and this journal would be presented to her brother, her leader, the man behind these assassination attempts. One day he would read the ink on the pages and realize that she didn't blame him. In spite of his and Ayane's efforts to kill her, she understood their motives.

They chose honor.

She chose love and vengeance.

And there were consequences to every decision. Her life was forfeit, but her siblings would have to live with the stain of her blood on their hands. She wasn't sure who had the worse deal.

Kasumi leaned her forehead against the rough bark of the tree. She would just rest for a few moments, catch her breath, and then she'd be off again. Maybe she'd be able to muster enough energy to use her ninpo cherry blossom teleportation technique. It had saved her life before; maybe it could do so again.

* * *

**OoO**

For three years Ryu Hayabusa had kept a close eye on Kasumi and she'd constantly been able to evade her assassins. However, that night, she'd been gravely injured. Her leg had been cut deep and she'd been leaving a blood trail that even a child could follow. She had managed to render her would-be assassins unconscious, but they would soon awaken and put her to sleep forever if he didn't intervene.

Ryu had found her binding her leg with a strip of her pants' leg. It was a crude bandage, but she'd already suffered severe blood loss. Ryu had just made it to the base of her tree when she fell off her branch. He caught her with ease and picked up the short sword that fell moments after her. She was ridiculously light and it was easy to forget how small she actually was when he watched her fight. He looked down at her sweat drenched forehead and brushed aside her coppery hair. Her skin was smudged with dirt, her lips parched in dehydration, and her hair was full of leaves. She'd certainly seen better days.

If he wanted for her to live he knew that he couldn't allow her to continue her constant running. He couldn't always be there to shadow her. What if he had been on a mission? What would he have done if she had died and he hadn't been there for her? There had been no conscious decision on his part. It was the only decision. He held Kasumi close to his chest with one arm under her back and the other under her knees and strapped her satchel across his own shoulders.

He'd carried her back to his village using teleportation as much as possible to make it difficult for others to track them. He trusted the Hayabusa clan, but he didn't want to involve them in a possible war that offering Kasumi sanctuary from the Mugen Tenshin would cause. So, he brought her to the home of the one person he trusted to keep her presence an absolute secret. A man who wasn't technically a member of the clan.

"What brings you here, Ryu?" Muramasa asked. The old man was a retired weapons' maker. He only wanted to live in peace and quiet, but he had assisted Ryu many times with his wisdom and experience on his quests. "Is this the girl? Quickly, enter," he said ushering them inside his home.

"I need to clean her wound," Ryu explained. "And I need to keep her presence a secret."

"Coming to my door in the middle of the night will certainly help keep a low profile. I will fill a bowl with warm water and bring you some clean rags and healing herbs," Muramasa said. "Set her in the bedroom. I hardly ever go in there with my arthritic back I usually sleep in my rocking chair in the sitting room."

Ryu did as instructed and set Kasumi on Muramasa's unused bed. He pressed the back of his hand to her forehead. She had a fever. He would at least nurse her back to health before he allowed her to run away again. Or maybe, maybe this time he might convince her to rest.

Her clothes were a mess. He opened her satchel to see if she might have a change of clothing. She had at least two outfits inside that were relatively clean. She must have cleaned them by hand using the spring waters and the rocks within the rivers. However, they were both very revealing. He also noticed several weapons, a set of tarot cards wrapped in a silk cloth, cleaning tools for weapons and a book inside. He placed the items back inside the bag.

He hurried to Muramasa. "I'll be back. I'm going to grab a change of clothes for her from my place. She needs something loose fitting that will cover her up. She seems to have quite a fever."

"Okay, Master Hayabusa," Muramasa said. "Just return before she awakens. I don't want a panicked kunoichi on my hands."

Ryu nodded before he set off at a run from the old man's home and hurried to the small house that served as his dwelling whenever he was in the village. He pulled out a pair of old blue ninja robes that he hadn't worn in years because he'd outgrown them. Perhaps they would be a better fit for Kasumi. They'd still be too big, but at least they would be clean and warm.

He hurried back to find Kasumi moaning. Muramasa stood over her and was unbinding her leg. He glanced over his shoulder at Ryu. "Good, make yourself useful. I want you to clean her wound. And after we address that you should clean the rest of her. She'd probably appreciate you doing it more than a lecherous old man."

Ryu nodded and took the bowl of warm water and the clean rags from the old man. He dipped the rag into the mix of warm water and antiseptic herbs and gently cleansed Kasumi's leg. "Do you think it needs stitches?" Ryu asked.

"Your eyes are better than mine. What do you think?" Muramasa asked.

"I think you had best get me the needle and thread," Ryu said with a sigh. If the old man was lamenting his poor eye sight then that meant Ryu would have to suture Kasumi. He wasn't the best at stitches, but he was decent.

"What's going on?" Kasumi asked lifting her head from the bed with her weight on her elbows. Her eyes blinked open and she stared up at Ryu with a tired expression. She had dark circles under her eyes. "Hayabusa? Did you take me somewhere?"

"You fell out of a tree and so I thought it might be time you accepted some help."

"Okay," Kasumi said falling back to the bed. "Suzaku sliced me good on my thigh."

"That he did," Ryu agreed. He didn't want to ask how she knew the assassin's name. He couldn't even imagine what it might be like to have your childhood friends ordered out to kill you. "You need stitches."

Kasumi smiled weakly. "Feeling squeamish, Hayabusa? I can do the sutures. I've done them before. I have a kit in the bottom of my bag."

"No need," Ryu said holding up the needle and thread. "I have some right here. I don't have anything for pain. I'm sorry." He chewed the inside of his mouth as he felt the dread rise up in his gut. Kasumi needed the sutures, but he didn't want to inflict pain upon her.

Kasumi sat up and grasped hold of Ryu's wrists. "I'll do it. Like I said, I've done it before and I didn't have anything for pain then either."

Ryu relinquished the needle and thread and watched as Kasumi sutured her laceration. Her brows were furrowed in concentration and while he knew that it had to hurt she didn't cry out. Ten stitches later she tied off the end of the suture and handed the tools back to Ryu.

"I have some clean water for you to wash yourself and a clean outfit of mine for you to use for the time being," Ryu said.

Kasumi sat up in the bed and pulled off her shirt and what remained of her pants, she wore bindings over her chest and a pair of small underwear. Ryu knew he should look away, but he was afraid he couldn't. He could see the evidence of healed suture wounds on her abdomen and back. How she managed to reach some of the areas was a testament to her flexibility. With trembling arms, Kasumi reached for the rag on the side table next to the bed and dipped it into the water.

"Let me help," Ryu said taking the rag from her. He sat on the edge of the bed and Kasumi relaxed against him, clearly exhausted. He gently ran the cloth over her back to clean off the grime. She was relatively clean all things considered. "For someone living in the forest you're not too dirty," he commented.

"Hot springs. They're the only pleasure in my life these days," Kasumi said sighing deeply.

He ran the cloth over one particularly long scar on her back. "How did you manage to suture this one?"

"I couldn't. I had to use mud from one of the hot springs to try and keep it sealed," Kasumi answered.

"You should have found me. I would have helped you," Ryu said.

Kasumi sat up and took the cloth from him and began to scrub her arms and legs. "You aren't always around. I'm glad you were there today though."

There was a knock on the door. Ryu stood to answer it and Muramasa stood with a tray with a jug of water, wooden cup, bowl of rice, and a couple of strips of grilled fish. "Make sure she hydrates and make sure she eats."

"Who was that?" Kasumi asked. In the time that Ryu went to answer the door she'd finished bathing and had slipped on his old robes. The clothing was too big for her, but it would keep her warm. "That was the kind old man that has given you refuge this night. I'll introduce you to each other in the morning. Drink and eat," he said holding the tray in front of her.

Kasumi picked up the wooden cup, then placed it back and lifted the jar. She drank straight out of the water vessel before putting it down. "I know I shouldn't drink so much so fast, but I'm just so thirsty," she said. She took a rice ball and began to nibble on it slowly.

"Kasumi, I want you to stay with me for a while," Ryu said.

"Oh, Hayabusa, I don't want to impose," Kasumi said with a fatigued smile.

"You don't have to be so formal with me, Kasumi. I did just wash your back," he said with a teasing smile.

She stared at him for a moment. She then reached out and touched him with her fingertips brushing one of his eyebrows. "Your eyes light up like fireflies at night when you smile. You should try it more often, Ryu."

Ryu shrugged. "I would smile more often if there was more to smile about."

"I' m so tired," Kasumi said setting the half-eaten rice ball back on her tray. Ryu took the tray and placed it on the side table.

"Sleep. I'll keep watch over you tonight. You'll be safe with me."

"Thank you," Kasumi said. She closed her eyes and within seconds she was sound asleep.

Ryu reached over and brushed her forehead and was glad to see that the fever while still present was less severe. He took a piece of the fish Muramasa provided and popped it into his mouth. He turned down the lantern at the side of the bed, but kept a soft light about the room.

Curiously got the better of him and he pulled the book from Kasumi's bag. He opened it and started to read it by the light of the lantern. Half of the books' pages were full of Kasumi's neat, cursive writing.

_Hayate,_

_I have decided to start a record of my days. Being a runaway shinobi is a very lonely way to live. At least this way, I know that when I die you'll be able to know what was happening to your little sister. Maybe it will make my loss easier to accept when the time comes. Today is my eighteenth birthday. I wish I could celebrate it with you. I'm glad that you're okay. I made a wish that I could see my family and I saw Ayane. Of course, she was trying to kill me, but I'm glad that she looks healthy. Maybe the clan is treating her better now that they can focus their hatred on me. It's funny; I won the DOA tournament last year and lost my entire family in the process. I guess winning isn't all it's cracked up to be, but the prize money has made it easier to survive. At least I stopped our uncle. Maybe both you and Ayane will have peace now that he's gone. I've had to take up fishing. I imagine Hayabusa will be amused to learn that all his lessons when we were kids have been put to good use. Give Ayane a hug for me, please._

_K_

Ryu placed his hand inside the book to mark the place and looked over at Kasumi. Was this her journal? He looked back to the book and flipped through the pages. It was a collection of letters addressed to Hayate, Ayane, and him. Ryu opened the book to the first entry that was addressed to him.

_Ryu,_

_I know you are often annoyed by me. I appreciate how many times you've helped protect me and saved my life. I really enjoyed working alongside you in the team battles in the DOA tournaments. You're the best partner I've ever had. I hope I didn't hold you back too much. However, there will be one day that you won't be there – and that's okay. I don't want you to blame yourself when it happens. I chose this life. Being a ninja is never easy, but it's certainly harder on the run. I look forward to the next DOA tournament because it's the only time I can see you or my siblings without worrying for assassins – I just have to worry about evil scientists!_

_Sorry to be rambling, if you're reading this that means I've already left this world. I just wanted to say that I'll watch over you now. I'll be that star shining bright in the sky on those particularly dark nights. Thank you, for being there for me. You are the only friend I have in this world and I love you for it._

_K_

Ryu shut the journal and could feel his eyes mist over as he read the entry addressed to him. He wondered what the other entries might have said, but he didn't feel right reading them. He placed the book back inside Kasumi's satchel. He stood to the side of Kasumi's bed and pressed his hand against her forehead once more, still warm, but getting better. He took the chair next to her bed and leaned it against the wall that gave him the perfect vantage point of Kasumi's sleeping figure, the window, and the doorway.

In the morning, he'd have a very serious talk with Kasumi about her future because he couldn't allow her to keep on living as she had been. Ryu made a promise to protect her and he would see to it that she wasn't needlessly endangered. If she'd been living off the land for the past three years she'd probably appreciate the idea he had in mind.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Special thanks to Kaneshiro-sama for being so dang inspirational!_

* * *

**Heir Apparent**

**Chapter Two:**

It was habit to wake up before the sun rose. Kasumi's eyes popped open at exactly four fifty in the morning, the same as they always did. The fifth hour was always the darkest and the best time to lose would-be trackers. Her muscles were tensed and ready for action and her mind was sharp and alert.

Immediately, she saw Hayabusa in the room with her and she forced herself to relax. She remembered earlier in the night her unfortunate run-in with the would-be assassins. The tray of unfinished food was on the side table next to her. She quickly consumed the pieces of fish and the rest of the rice ball. Over the years her stomach had learned how to digest mostly raw food because it wasn't always safe to light a fire to cook your meat when others were out hunting you. A grilled fish that had been sitting out for a few hours wasn't going to hurt her.

Kasumi rolled up the pants leg of her borrowed clothing she and checked her bandage. It had blood stains seeped through the white, but they were brown bloodstains — long since dried. She'd leave it be for now. She reached up to pull her long hair into a knot at the base of her neck when her hand brushed across quite a few leaves.

"I see you're awake," Ryu greeted.

She met his green eyes and smiled awkwardly. How embarrassing to be sitting before such a man with leaves and twigs stuck throughout her hair. His hair was possibly longer than hers but she couldn't recall ever having seen leaves stuck in his brown locks. "I don't sleep much these days," she answered.

"That explains the dark circles under your eyes," he observed.

And now he pointed out just how awful she looked. "I didn't have a chance to pack my concealer and other makeup," Kasumi said folding her arms over her chest in irritation.

"And you're too skinny," Ryu said. "I could practically count every vertebrae in your back when I was washing you earlier."

"I'm not as good a hunter as you. And this fall has been lean. I'm not looking forward to winter," she said with a shiver. It was only a few weeks into September and things did not look promising. She barely survived the last winter and that was only because she'd gone abroad to China and imposed upon Leifang's hospitality.

"Would you consider staying here? At least until the winter is over?" Ryu asked.

It was so very tempting and Kasumi desperately wanted to say yes. She could stay until spring when the cherry blossoms appeared. It would be a good omen. "I cannot ask you to endanger yourself or anyone else trying to protect me."

"There's a place I'd like to show you. It's not part of the Hayabusa Village, though it is within our territory. It's a place deep within the mountains. It's very remote and secluded. When you're feeling better I'd like to take you there. You could stay there," Ryu said.

"Maybe, if I won't endanger anyone, I could stay there through the winter," Kasumi reluctantly agreed. She dared not trust the spark of optimism she could feel forming in her chest.

"Your clothes are unsuitable. I'll acquire you some uniforms from the unused gis of our younger shinobi. They won't be particularly flattering, but they will be functional and warm," Ryu explained.

"Who would I be worried about impressing?" Kasumi asked. She used to have another bag full of causal clothing, but it had been set on fire by a flaming arrow. Better the bag than her, but she still missed her blue jean jacket. "Could you bring me my satchel?"

Ryu said nothing, but he stood and collected her bag and brought it to the bed. She began to shift through the few items inside until she drew out her mother's tarot cards that she'd kept wrapped in her mother's old silk scarf. They were the only things that she had of her mother's and above all else they were her most prized possessions. No matter what the decrees of the clan she knew that her mother, Ayame, loved her and wished for her well-being. She began to lay out a series of cards on top of the covers.

"What are you doing?" Ryu asked. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked closely at the cards.

"I'm hoping these will help me make a decision on whether or not I should check out this remote dwelling of yours or not," Kasumi said as she concentrated. She did a reading of the cards and it seemed that it would be fortuitous and favorable for her to check out this remote region. "I can read your future if you'd like?"

"Where did you learn this?" Ryu asked. "And I'm not sure I want to know my future," he added with a scowl.

"It's mostly vague interpretation. You have to ask a question and the cards will lead me to an answer for you," Kasumi explained. She looked up and had to push aside a strand of her hair that had come loose of the knot she tied.

"Maybe later."

"Oh come on, just one question. I promise it won't hurt," Kasumi said with a teasing smile.

"Very well. Will I have children to succeed me in the role of clan leader?" Ryu asked.

Kasumi's smile slipped off her face. She didn't expect him to ask such a serious question. If she told him a negative response what would that do to him? She would just have to hope for a good fortune. "I need you to touch the deck," she instructed. She wasn't sure if that was necessarily required for reading tarot cards but it's something her mother taught her and so far she'd been fairly accurate in her readings.

Ryu did as requested. Kasumi drew the allotment of cards from the deck and laid them out and then tried to interpret them. Unfortunately, it wasn't a straight forward answer — they seldom times were.

"What's wrong?" Ryu asked.

"Nothing, its just kind of a strange answer," Kasumi said. She bit down on her bottom lip, it was still chapped from her time in the elements. She really needed a make-over! "There are two paths. One is a dead end. Something or someone from your past has presented a great obstacle. And the other path is something unexpected. A chance happening that could lead to many….dragons? The last part really doesn't make sense." Kasumi glanced up and met Ryu's eyes. He was watching her with an intent focus in his green eyes. "Does that make sense to you? Dragons?"

He nodded and then stretched out his hand and plucked a leaf from her hair. Then he stood from the bed and went back to the chair he had vacated. "Go back to sleep. Later, in the evening I will gather you more clothes and supplies for our trip into the mountains. When do you think you'll be ready?"

"I can be ready by tonight," Kasumi said.

"Won't your leg bother you?" Ryu asked, his voice laced with concern.

"I've had worse," Kasumi said. She was grateful that she'd worn the bandages to bind her chest that day. If Hayabusa thought the wound on her leg was bad he hadn't seen the ones she had scored across her torso. "I won't be able to sleep though. Once I'm up, I'm up."

"Do you trust me?" Ryu asked.

"What kind of question is that? Of course I trust you! I trust you more than anyone," Kasumi said. She began to stack up her tarot cards and wrap them back inside the silk fabric.

"I'll make you some tea and you will sleep for at least four hours."

"Tea doesn't exactly sound ominous," Kasumi said. She put her cards back inside her satchel and handed the bag back to Hayabusa. He set it on the floor next to his vacated chair.

"If I give you too much it will kill you," he explained.

"Oh. Well, do you need to know my weight or anything so you can make the right amount?"

He shook his head. "No need. I know how much you weigh. I did carry you here last night," he said. "I'll be back."

* * *

**OoO**

Ryu used a very small amount of nightshade to put Kasumi to sleep. He added a bit of honey to make the bitter tea more palatable. He erred on the side of caution when trying to determine how much of the toxic berry to give her. He returned to his chair to serve as sentry while she slept. He'd go about his errands while she was awake and able to defend herself. It was unlikely, but possible, that Hayate's assassins might raid his village looking for her.

He had forgotten that he'd put Kasumi's bag next to his chair. He picked it up with the intention of setting it back on the table it was on earlier, but his attention was directed within. Her journal was sitting on top of the tarot cards — the latter of which he thought was a bunch of hocus pocus. It was hard to believe that Kasumi put any real stock into being able to read fortunes. And her answer for his question was just ridiculous. All he wanted was a yes or no.

With a guilty look toward a sleeping Kasumi he took the journal out of the bag. There weren't too many things that piqued his interest and while he knew that he shouldn't read it, he couldn't resist. It might be a long time before he had an opportunity to read it's contents again. He sat back in his chair and began to flip through the entries. Most of them were addressed to Hayate. He found one dated about a year ago for Ayane and decided to read it.

_Ayane,_

_Dear sister, I hope you take time to enjoy the beautiful things. I have been blessed this winter! The bitter cold creeped all around me and I thought I might perish due to the elements and not at the hand of an honorable ninja. However, I have a friend that offered me sanctuary. And today I have seen the most wondrous thing with her! One day you simply must travel to Harbin. It is an area where Russia and China meet in the west. They have the annual Russian Ice Festival there. I have seen fairy tales come to life before my very eyes. Do you remember the time when we were little and mother took us to the beach and we made castles in the sand? It is like that, but made of ice and so huge! I hope that one day you can see it. Perhaps you and mother might make the trip together._

_K_

Hayabusa raised one of his hands to his temples and began to massage the headache that was forming. He'd never been to Harbin to see the ice festival, but maybe it was something he should check out. If he had a mission that sent him that way he'd be sure to see this magical place for himself. Reading her letter to Ayane was depressing. It was obvious that Kasumi loved both of her siblings, but her siblings had no sympathy. What made it extra hard was that he actually respected Ayane's skills and her determination. It was twisted, but Ayane wanted to end her sister's life so that when Kasumi died the last face she saw would be of someone that loved her.

He flipped to the back of the journal and found the last entry. It was addressed to him. And the dark black script that filled the other pages was gone. This entry had been written with something else, something that turned a rusted brown color as the ink dried.

_Ryu,_

_Maybe this is my last entry. I don't know. My ink pen has long since dried out. I received a kunai to my lower back — it missed my kidney thankfully. However, the wound provided a copious amount of blood so I decided to fill up my pen with it. I've become quite resourceful over the past few years! I'm growing weary of my constant running. I've had some good times in my life. I've had friends and family that loved me. I'm thinking of just letting the next team of ninjas that come after me win. Maybe I'll be gravely wounded and just go find a tree and let myself die from blood loss. I don't have the courage for seppuku, but then that's the samurai bushido. I wish that I had a dream like Tina. I'm sure one day she'll be a great rock star. Or maybe a friendly rivalry like Lei Fang has with Jann Lee. I am ninja, but I have no clan. I am no one. And I am tired. The only reason I'm still running is because I am afraid that you will be the one to find my body. And I'm afraid that you will not forgive yourself if I die. My fear of your guilt is the only reason I do not give up. So know this, I won't die without a fight._

_Kasumi_

It was the only entry that she had signed her whole name and it was dated a month ago. Ryu closed the journal and put it back inside her bag. His heart felt heavy. A big part of him wished he hadn't read her journal, but now he knew what was going on behind those honey-colored eyes of hers. He resolved to convince her to stay in his home tucked away deep within the mountain. Maybe she'd find a reason to live if she could think beyond the next moment of survival.

* * *

**OoO**

Ryu waited until dark when the Hayabusa Village had settled down for the night before he went to the training center and gathered a few extra training uniforms for Kasumi. He chose an assortment of uniforms in black, blue, gray, and green. He tossed the uniforms inside of a duffle bag he used for many of his missions before he went to his own small residence in the village. He packed foods and weapons and plenty of water and a water filtration device for a pair of canteens for their use.

He also grabbed his first aid kid. It wouldn't hurt to be cautious. This would be the first time that he'd shown anyone the home he was building for himself deep within the mountains. In the remote area he'd found he could survive off the land comfortably for the rest of his days. And he'd created so many traps around the premises that it would be near impossible to penetrate his deadly defenses.

If there was one place he could think that Kasumi might find respite from her would-be assassins it would be this place. When he arrived back at Muramasa's residence he found Kasumi packed and ready to go.

"Do you have to leave so soon?" Muramasa asked.

"I do not wish to endanger you with my presence any longer, honorable Muramasa," Kasumi said with a bow of respect.

"This girl is wonderful!" Muramasa said elbowing Hayabusa in the ribs. "She listens to my stories as if she truly cares about what happened fifty years ago. And she tells fortunes! Apparently, I'm going to meet a friend for life soon."

"Well, we had best leave you be so that you can meet this new friend," Ryu said. "It's going to take us a few days. We had best set out at once." He reached out and took hold of her elbow. "I'm going to teleport us, you ready?"

Kasumi nodded and then they were vanished from one place and reappearing at another. They didn't speak, only communicated with silent hand signals. Both were used to solo shinobi missions — hers a matter of survival and his because it was easier to do things himself. However, regardless of their solitaire habits, they were able to communicate with ease.

It took two days of constant travel to reach the land. He instructed Kasumi in how to avoid his traps. Later, he'd ask her for suggestions of more ways to make the land secure. Tucked deep within the mountains stood a half-finished cabin. Hayabusa had built it himself by hand. It was made of cedar and stone from the land. He had been working on it for almost ten years. He'd become lost in this area when he was seventeen and eventually decided that one day it would be his home. It was remote and it was peaceful. What more could he want?

"It's not much," Ryu said. He set the two duffle bags he carried at the door of the cabin. One bag was full of his stuff and the other the things he'd gathered for Kasumi's use. "I keep meaning to finish it, but I'm always being called away for missions."

"You built this yourself?" Kasumi asked, her voice quiet and awed. She ran her fingertips over the stone on the outside of the building.

"Yes, I gathered the materials from nearby, but am careful to not strip the land. I take a little here and a little there," Ryu explained. "It's supposed to be eight rooms when I'm finished. Four bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room, a wash room, and a dojo."

"That's a lot of rooms," Kasumi said.

"I've got three finished, but it's weather proofed. At least the finished parts are. You're welcome to stay here," Ryu said. It wasn't like he was using the cabin. But one day he would. He'd want to raise his children — the heirs of the dragon blood away from the violence of the clan until they were old enough to make their own decisions. He wanted his children to enjoy the land — learn how to fish and climb trees. After they understood the beauty of life then he'd let them decide if they wanted to be a ninja. However, he had no children and there was no reason to let the space go to waste in the meantime.

"I will help you finish it," Kasumi said.

"Do you know how to build?" Ryu asked.

"I will learn," she said with a smile.

Ryu found himself smiling back at her determination, but the smile quickly slipped off his face as he saw the dark crimson stain forming on Kasumi's right thigh. "Your leg is bleeding."

Kasumi slid down the stone wall and rested her back against the wall and kept her left knee bent up and stretched her right leg out in front of her. "Perhaps the last two days of running non-stop were a bit much for me. If you don't mind, I'm going to rest just for a bit."

The words were no sooner out of her mouth than she was sound asleep. Ryu went to her side, pulled up the pants leg on her injured side and redressed her wound in fresh bandages. He had no doubt that she'd work hard to help him complete the residence. While she slept he gathered fresh water from pumping it out of the well he'd created and then he searched the woods for rabbits - easy to catch and easy to cook. Kasumi would need meat to help replenish the blood that she had lost.

Over the next three days, Ryu showed Kasumi where he gathered the stones and where he cut down trees that the forest could spare. He pointed out which trees were best for what. He intended to build furniture out of the forest's materials too. He showed her the blueprint that he'd painstakingly drawn out years ago. And she pointed out a few structural errors and they modified the blueprint accordingly.

Kasumi had worked just as hard as he did. No one watching her labor would ever mistake her small frame for weak even in her anemic state. Ryu knew that he needed to head back to Hayabusa Village to check in with his father Joe. He also wanted to visit with Muramasa and let him know that their mutual acquaintance was fine. He didn't like leaving Kasumi alone, but she assured him that she would be fine. She knew the best place to find fish and hunt rabbit. She didn't need him hovering. Her skin wasn't as pale now, so he had to trust she knew her body's limits.

He planned to return within four days, but it took two weeks.

* * *

**OoO**

Hayate paced back and forth anxiously. He both dreaded and anticipated the return of the four-man ninja squad he'd approved to seek out Kasumi that week. They were under strict orders to return her — alive without any serious injury. However, he knew that they would take liberties if they caught her. To prove themselves a superior shinobi they might take it upon their own violation to kill her. It didn't matter than no matter how many pursuits Kasumi still hadn't killed anyone within their clan — merely rendered them unconscious and carried on with her constant running.

He could hear soft footsteps crunching the grass under their weight. The chi was familiar so Hayate kept at his pacing.

"You will wear a hole in the earth that way, my son," Shiden, his father said in a deep rumbling voice.

"Would you rather spar with me to help me relieve some of this nervous energy?" Hayate asked. He turned to his father to see the leanly muscled man with a shock of white hair and the same amber eyes that he shared with his son. Kasumi had their mother's golden-honey colored eyes.

"I am always up for some training with you," Shiden said with an uplifting of the corner of his mouth - the only indication of his eagerness.

"Very well," Hayate said. He stood in his fighting stance and waited for his father to make the first move.

Shiden moved in for a heavy punch and Hayate evaded, whirling around his father with the superior speed supplied by his youth and chopped his father between the shoulder blades — knowing a neck chop would have unnecessarily rendered his opponent unconscious.

The previous master of the Mugen Tenshin rolled back his shoulders to ease the pain of the attack. "Nicely executed." He then went in for another series of punches in which he and Hayate smoothly blocked one after another in a frenzy of movement. "Now, why are you so agitated?"

"Why am I always agitated?" Hayate said through gritted teeth.

"The clan rules are clear, my son," Shiden said. "She left and violated my orders."

"But she defeated Raidou and restored me to health in the process," Hayate argued. It wasn't the first time they'd had this argument.

"And the secrets to our clan are at risk of being exposed to others. Ninjas are secretive for a reason. We stick to the shadows. How can we trust her not to reveal our secrets when she's the most popular contestant in that ridiculous Dead or Alive tournament you all participate in," Shiden said. He delivered a powerful blow to Hayate's gut and sent the younger ninja flying toward a nearby tree.

Hayate managed to flip himself in mid-air, brace his feet on the tree racing towards him and redirect the momentum to land easily on his feet. "Ayane and I also participate in these tournaments. Aren't you worried that we might reveal too much of the clan's secrets through our techniques?"

"You are not as emotional as Kasumi. That has always been her fault. If she wasn't so emotional she'd be the master of our clan, not you," Shiden said.

"And I would be dead," Hayate argued.

"Then she needs to be contained before that weapons' corporation behind those tournaments gets their hands on another sample of her blood. Didn't you say they created clones of her? She is a danger alive," Shiden said.

"They also had clones of me," Hayate argued.

"And you're here, not on the run where anyone might cross your path." Shiden broke his fighting pose and ran his hands through his hair musing it in the process. "I miss her too, but we are shinobi. There is no room for love in our line of business."

"Says the man who married his childhood sweetheart," Hayate argued through narrowed eyes. Hayate may have been the 18th master of their clan, but everyone still deferred to his father for the true leadership. Hayate often felt like a puppet leader. Otherwise, he'd have been able to lift the death order on Kasumi himself. His father blamed Kasumi's fate on her emotions, yet Shido was guilty of being stubborn in his attempt to prove he had no emotions. The tension in his parents' marriage as a result was palatable.

Both father and son straightened at the sound of approaching ninjas. It was the four-man squad having returned. Hayate could feel his heart start to beat erratically in his chest as he feared what they had to say once he saw the satisfied smirk on Suzaku's face.

The four-men team all kneeled in respect before Hayate and Shiden. "Master Hayate, Grandmaster Shiden we bring good news in regard to the runaway shinobi — Kasumi."

"Well?" Hayate probed when it became apparent they were waiting for his response.

"I grievously wounded her with my sword," Suzaku said. He revealed his katana and the blood stains upon it's blade. I severed the femoral artery in her right leg, the blood trail was extensive. We followed it to a tree where a large pool of blood accumulated."

Hayate watched his father from the corner of his eye and could see the muscle in Shiden's jaw twitched — not so unmoved after all. Hayate forced himself to be stoic. "So where is the body?"

Suzaku's eyes dropped to his feet. "We believe she teleported, Master Hayate. There is no way one could survive such a massive blood loss," he said glancing up and meeting Hayate's eyes.

Hayate took the sword from Suzaku's outstretched hands. It was Kasumi's life blood.

"You have done well, now return to your families," Shiden said dismissing the squad. After they were gone, he placed his hand upon Hayate's shoulder. "What do you think?"

Hayate jerked out of his reach. "I think it's over," Hayate said. "I will not be sending out any more scouts."

"I think it sounds like if Kasumi had teleported there would have been cherry blossoms scattered onto the forest floor," Shiden said.

Hayate had thought the same thing and that was all that had kept his heart from shattering. Teleportation was the most likely explanation, but fallen oak leaves were harder to discover scattered on the forest floor. He could only hope that Hayabusa had found Kasumi in time. Maybe his best friend could convince her to leave Japan once and for all. Maybe she'd be safe in America. Surely, Hayabusa's wife Irene would be able to help her create a new identity with her connections in the C.I.A. "I would like some time alone, to grieve," Hayate said.

"You are not the only one grieving, my son," Shiden said. He turned and walked away.

Hayate leaned against a nearby tree and stared at the bloodstains upon the katana's blade. It would destroy his mother, Ayame, to hear of the news. She was the only one to argue with the death decree against Kasumi. She'd begged of Ayane to stop on her quest to murder her other daughter. Unfortunately, it had only made Ayane more determined to eliminate Kasumi from their mother's heart. She was a jealous young woman, but in her own way she too loved Kasumi. Hayate knew that Ayane wanted to be the one to kill Kasumi so that she might die seeing the face of someone that loved her.

It was sick and twisted and Hayate sincerely hoped that beyond all odds that Hayabusa had been there. He'd been busy lately with many missions for his own clan. What if he'd been gone? Warm tears began to trickle down Hayate's face and before long he had crumbled to his knees and clutched the katana's handle tightly as he let the emotions he'd locked away for the past four years release.

* * *

_A/N: So, just FYI this is a Hayabusa x Kasumi story, but Irene hasn't been forgotten. I'm not exactly an Irene-basher, but after watching DOA Dimensions and seeing Hayabusa bi*ch slap Kasumi I'm a bit ticked off at the writers for the series. I don't think Irene belongs in DOA — she belongs in an antiquated Ninja Gaiden where they didn't realize the main character would be so popular he'd be around for the next several decades. How does the heir to a ninja clan retire and open an antique shop in the states in his early twenties— he doesn't. And just like the Nintendo writers tried to force her into the cannon I'll help her find her way out! That's why the Wii -U is so terrible, it's kharma for ruining my OTP of DOA!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Heir Apparent**

**Chapter Three:**

Muramasa had agreed to keep Kasumi company during Ryu's long absences. It had actually been the old man's idea. He said that a young woman needed a guardian. And as she was the only one in the entire village that appreciated his stories he would be willing to take on that role. Hayabusa had agreed. The old man claimed that no one would miss him and his absence would be chalked up to him going senile and losing himself in the woods and dying from the elements. He had a good point.

By the time they returned to Hayabusa's remote home, as it took longer with an older man whom he had to constantly use teleportation to make the journey easier, Ryu was shocked by the progress. During his absence, Kasumi had finished the fourth room. And she'd even put up a little garden to the right of the cabin. Ryu helped Muramasa settle in to one of the other finished rooms before he went to check on Kasumi.

The kunoichi was sleeping soundly on a pallet of blankets on the floor of her room. Ryu leaned against the wall and watched her. Her youthful face was relaxed in the blissful oblivion of sleep. At least, it was until she started to thrash in her sleep. Abruptly, Kasumi sat up, ninja throwing star between her fingers and locked gazes with him. She relaxed and dropped the ninja star onto the floor.

"You're back," Kasumi stated. She rubbed her eyes with the knuckles of her fists. "I should have been more careful. If it hadn't been you I'd be dead now."

He could understand why she berated herself. Her years on the run would make her wary to let down her guard completely. However, to be fair, he was a super ninja and able to mask his presence better than most. Her subconscious didn't pick up his presence immediately because he represented no danger to her. "We have countless traps to keep unwanted guests away. You've been busy."

"I have nothing but time on my hands," Kasumi answered. She laid back down on her pallet and stared up at the ceiling, her long silky copper hair fanned out behind her.

"Bad dream?"

"Just the usual, death at the hands of one of my siblings. It was Hayate that killed me tonight," she said closing her eyes. "He held Suzaku's sword — the one that sliced into my leg the night you found me — and it was covered in blood."

"It will get better," Ryu said. "I'll keep watch over you."

"I slept just fine while you were away," Kasumi argued opening her eyes.

"There are only two bedrooms finished and I don't want to share with Muramasa. So humor me, would you? He snores," Ryu explained.

"Ah, in that case. You are welcome."

Several minutes of silence passed between with Kasumi staring at the ceiling and Hayabusa staring out the window. Then Ryu asked the question that was nagging at the back of his mind. "How did you cut down the trees by yourself? I only showed you the technique where you can fell trees using a two-person team with my saw."

"I am ninja. You think a little tree that's stood on this earth for decades could defy my kicks and punches?" Kasumi asked.

"You kicked the trees down?" Ryu asked, somewhat surprised. He would have thought such a brutal method would have damaged too much of the wood. Maybe he needed to inspect the quality of the lumber and the work Kasumi had done on the place a little more thoroughly in the morning.

"I have a very precise use of force with my attacks. Feel free to inspect my work in the morning and let me know of any fault you might find, Hayabusa. In the mean time, good night," Kasumi said.

"Good night," he echoed. He wondered at her defensiveness — perhaps the past few years her enforced solitude hadn't been healthy for her social skills. She was probably as inept as he was now. Ryu reached over and adjusted the blankets to fit more securely around Kasumi. Then he closed his eyes and soon was asleep himself. He was always on high alert, but that night he relaxed just a fraction and trusted in the protective traps he'd set up around the area he'd chosen to make his home.

* * *

**OoO**

Hayabusa was often gone for long periods of time, but Kasumi didn't mind. He had done more for her than anyone else in her life. He'd provided her a secure place where she could finally enjoy some peace. And best of all, she wasn't condemned to being alone. She liked the old man Muramasa. He told such wonderful stories! And he was a wealth of knowledge. And he liked her fortune reading.

He was a very famous weapons' master and he'd given her a new katana and wakizashi from the materials he'd asked Hayabusa to bring back from various missions. And Muramasa also took the time to train her in the use of such weapons. He said he appreciated having such a pretty apprentice and that he enjoyed her youthful enthusiasm. She'd just finished the dojo portion of the residence. She had tweaked Hayabusa's blueprint and found a way to include a porch to the front part of the cabin. She knew it wasn't her home, but she couldn't help but think of ways to make it the best that it could be.

They were half-way through winter, but it had been a mild season. Kasumi had been able to utilize the good weather to work on Hayabusa's home. She didn't know how long she'd be living there, but she knew that she would miss the place when it was time to move on. When she needed to think of home, it would be here that her thoughts would wander. She would dream of the days she toiled in the woods gathering lumber and stones to create it.

She was never in want of food. There was a great deal of deer and rabbit throughout the woods and the nearby streams were full of fish. Muramasa had brought with him books. One was about various herbs and roots used for medicinal purposes and another book was about edible and poisonous plants and animals in the forests. If she'd had access to such a book's information she'd have eaten a more healthy diet while on the run.

She still remembered the shock on Hayabusa's face when he came home to see her skinning a deer. She didn't quite know why he was so surprised that she knew how to gut and skin her own kill. He really did seem to forget that she survived on her own in the wild off and on for a few years now. The hide from that deer made her favorite throw blanket when winter's chill made it's presence known.

For the first time in a long time Kasumi felt happy and healthy. There was purpose in her life once more beyond constantly running and hoping to see the next day's sunrise. Without the constant fear nagging at her every waking moment she was able to meditate. It was a skill her father had taught her and when she meditated regularly it brought her a deep sense of calm.

However, when she meditated that's when the visions would come. It was a secret she kept to herself. There was no one she could tell of her ability so she hid it by reading fortunes with tarot cards and palm reading. It was safer that way. Had DAOTEC figured that out? Was that the real reason they were so determined to capture her genetics?

The first vision she had when she was a child. It was about her mother, Ayame. And it was about her mother injuring herself with a knife while cooking their dinner. Kasumi had been in the kitchen helping her mother when she saw the vision come to life right before her. The dreams weren't always about the future. She'd had one about her mother being assaulted by Raidou. That vision came to her once when she saw Ayane injured in the woods. Kasumi had taken the younger girl's hand in her own to help her when she'd seen the vision. Kasumi told no one of this vision, but years later when she learned that Ayane was her half-sister it all made sense.

Sometimes she would dream about an animal. She would see a deer leap out of a certain area of the woods after hearing a particular song by some birds. And the next day she would hear the bird's tune and see the deer leap out of the area of her dream. It made her an excellent hunter. In sparring matches with Hayate and Ayane she could almost sense their next move. She chalked it up to having practiced with them for so long that she could predict them. However, the weren't able to predict her moves so that reasoning didn't stand.

She had a dream about Hayate's life ending. She tried to convince him not to leave the clan, that his life was in danger. He ignored her. And because he ignored her warning that led to the chain reaction that led to her own status of runaway shinobi. And while he hadn't died, he'd been left comatose and broken and then later had his memory taken from him. It was an end to his former life. However, perhaps if her father had believed in her gift he wouldn't have chalked up her behavior to pure emotional immaturity. It hardly mattered now. At least Hayate was the 18th Master of the clan and not her. That should have made their father happy.

Sometimes her dreams were just a dreams — no predictive visions or glimpses of the past. Sometimes dreams were just her unconscious mind taking her anxieties and creating nightmares.

Over the past few years with her life on the run she hadn't as much time to meditate, but she tried to make time for her own sanity. And it would give her an idea of where attacks were coming from that she'd have been unable to stop without some warning. Her precognitive dreams saved her life many times. It had also led to her chance run-in with Lei Fang the previous year. China was a huge land with countless people and yet she managed to cross paths with the one person that could help her.

Now, that she was relatively safe living at Hayabusa's remote, mountain home she'd been able to spend more time meditating. She hoped that Ryu would return soon. She sensed a great deal of unease and discomfort for him on this mission. And in her visions that discomfort and unease was caused by a blonde woman that she didn't recognize. However, she saw the woman's eyes when she saw Hayabusa. And while she didn't need to know her, as a woman she could recognize the heartache in her pale eyes. She'd felt it plenty of times herself.

* * *

**OoO**

It was a luxurious detour that he shouldn't have taken, but he did so anyway. Going by the Russian Ice Festival in Harbin would only put him out of the way a day or so and the pictures he could take would be worth it. It felt strange to be dressed in civilian clothing, but it wasn't always practical to go about the public in ninja garb. He'd taken the train to Manchuria under one of his assumed names that he liked to use for travel.

Ryu generally didn't like to use technology as it could so often be used against him. A mobile cellular phone was very useful, but it could also be utilized to track your position. Ninjas didn't want to be found. However, the more modern phones were so handy and he was intelligent enough to know how to disable the tracking devices and to use it sparingly and only on a few contacts. Another problem was that most places he traveled didn't have service. However, having such a phone wasn't suspicious and was excellent for photographic evidence on his missions.

And perhaps his mission wasn't to take photographs, but he really wanted to do something for Kasumi and while taking her to the ice festival wasn't feasible he could take a little back to her. She had so little that he was sure she would treasure such a thing.

The sculptures were created by teams from various countries. It was up to the spectator to guess which sculptures were by the Japanese, Chinese, or Russian teams. He was admiring a large ice castle that they managed to light up that had a dragon perched on its upper tower when he spotted a familiar face.

He made his way over toward the young lady he recognized from the Dead or Alive tournaments. He believed that she was a friend of Kasumi's. "Leifang?" Ryu called out as he drew near.

The girl in question turned around to face him; she wore a bright red winter parka with golden fur trimming the hood. A big smile spread across her face as she recognized him. "Hayabusa, what are you doing here?" She looked past him. "Is Kasumi here?"

"She is not," Ryu answered. It was best not to confirm that he knew where she was, though it was a reasonable question considering he and Kasumi were always partners in the tournaments. He never knew who might be listening in. "Is Jann Lee here?"

Leifang scowled at the name. "No. He's serving as security for Tina's rock band while it tours Asia." She rubbed her gloved hands together briskly and drew them to her mouth and blew into them creating a puff of white fog in the air. "It's so cold here, but it's worth it to see these beauties."

Ryu nodded his head in agreement and stared up at the ice sculpture Leifang had been admiring. It was of a man and woman dancing, in the sculpture the people had large angelic wings that spread out far to their sides.

"You want me to take a picture of you?" Leifang asked. She pointed to the phone in his hand. He handed it to her. "I think it would be best to take one by that dragon castle sculpture you were by earlier," she said. Together, they walked back to the aforementioned sculpture and she snapped a picture of him. She handed the phone back to him. "Have you seen Kasumi? Is she okay? Did her brother decide to lift that kill order?"

He shook his head. The picture she had taken was decent. "Her life is still in danger," he answered avoiding the other questions.

"She and I came here last year," Leifang said with a sigh. "You should have seen her. I've never seen someone so excited by a little ice."

Ryu knew this already due to Kasumi's journal. "You saw her last year?"

"She stayed with me for a couple of months during the worse part of the winter and then one day she was gone. She left a note thanking me, but she said she couldn't risk endangering me anymore than she had." Leifang reached up and adjusted the hood to her coat. "It was really nice. She trained a few times with me and Jann Lee. We set her up with an email account, but I don't think she ever checks it. Or if she does, she hasn't responded to either of us."

"Most likely she does not have access to such technology. She tries to stay off the grid and hidden in the wilds," Ryu answered. This conversation was a stark reminder that he was not Kasumi's only friend and ally. "Let me take a picture of you," he said.

"Sure!" Leifang said. "By the big polar bear one!" She ran to one of the ice sculptures on the other side of the festival. Ryu hurried after her. Once in front of it, she pushed back her hood and sent her ebony hair flying in the wind behind her and struck a pose with one hand on her hip and the other behind her head. "I've been practicing my model poses," she said. "I hope Kasumi appreciates them."

He wasn't about to confirm whether or not the picture was for Kasumi. He snapped the picture and then put his phone away before the cold elements sapped the battery too much. There was a rumble in the distance and one of the ice sculptures toppled to the ground. Ryu took off in that direction and wasn't surprised that Leifang had followed after him.

Written in the ice was a message. _Watch all your castles come crumbling to the ground!_

"Help evacuate the people. I'll track down the culprits," Ryu said. He searched for clues and found a device that allowed for the blast to take place from a remotely activated bomb. Part of him was glad that he'd photographed the dragon castle before it was destroyed. It was going to melt eventually, but many people had been cheated out of seeing it's glory? And how many were injured in it's destruction?

"Who destroyed my castle?!" roared a very loud, angry and familiar voice.

Ryu turned to see a very angry and sober Brad Wong marching through the debris of the former ice castle.

"You! Super ninja! Find out who did this!" Brad said gripping Ryu's shoulder. He narrowed his eyes at the former drunkard and jerked his shoulder out of the man's grasp. "I worked hard on this sculpture and now it's being used for some terrorist message?"

"It was a nice sculpture," Ryu agreed.

"Well, let's go. You lead the way," Brad ordered. "You're the one that can read the clues."

He didn't want to team up with the irate man, but at least he was sober. "Fine, hurry," Ryu said.

He took off in the direction that he suspected the triggerman was hiding. It was a short range device that allowed the bomb to go off, and he decided to go towards the wooded area to the east because if he was trying to hide that's where he would have gone. He was impressed that the master of the drunken fist fighting style was keeping up with his fast pace, but he learned never to underestimate anger.

He was soon justified in following his instincts and within the woods he found a slew of terrorists. He and Brad made short work of them. They might have had guns, but guns don't do much good if you are too panicked to take aim. Ryu wouldn't have minded killing them all, but he had no jurisdiction and the courts of China and Russia were particularly brutal when it came to terrorists. It would be better justice to let them deal with the scum.

And while he didn't find the one that had pressed the trigger he did find something useful.

"These guys don't strike me as the sort to have been the mastermind behind this kind of attack. They acted more like sacrificial fodder to distract us," Brad said. He jerked the straps he used to bind the last of the terrorist hard. It was convenient for them that they all so thoughtfully wore belts so they could tie them up after knocking them unconscious.

There were bootprints in the snow. Hayabusa crouched down to examine them. They were small – like a woman's footprint. He held his hand out and compared the size and determined it looked like a size seven. There was also a convenient strand of short white hair caught up in a nearby bush. He pulled out his mobile phone and flipped through the pictures he'd just taken and focused on the one he'd taken of the ice sculpture that had been targeted. In the first picture of just the sculpture he saw no one unusual. In the second picture that Lei Fang took of him he could see a familiar feminine face in the background. "Do you happen to know anyone from the tournaments that wears a size seven? Enjoys working for people regardless of political affiliation as long as the price is right?"

"Christie?" Brad guessed when he spotted the hair in the bush.

"Exactly." Hayabusa held out his phone for Brad to inspect the picture. The drunkard whistled and tapped his finger over Christie's face on the image. Wherever Christie might have run off to she was gone for now and Ryu didn't have the luxury of time to hunt for her. It wasn't his current mission. "Let's go point out these men that we caught to the local authorities," Ryu suggested.

"I'll stand guard while you bring them here," Brad said.

Ryu watched with narrowed eyes as the Chinese fighter's right hand rested on the pocket of his vest on a bulge that looked suspiciously like a flask for liquor. "I'll stay here and you bring back the authorities."

Brad sighed and his hand fell away from his pocket. "Fine," he grumbled.

Ryu leaned against a nearby tree and kept a close watch on the scene with his senses on high alert for any activity. There was nothing until Brad came back with six authorities in tow. One of which Ryu didn't want to see. It was a woman whom he was intimately acquainted with, though her hair was different — a shorter blond. She was still beautiful, but her beauty was tainted by the lies she told him.

"Ryu? What are you doing here?" Irene asked.

"Happened to be passing through, " he answered in a flat tone. She would get no emotion from him. He was determined of that. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here on official C.I.A. business. We were investigating a possible terrorist attack with the local government. It looks like our sources were correct," Irene answered.

"Your sources didn't keep people from being hurt," Ryu answered. He gestured around toward the unconscious group of men that he and Brad had secured. "And Brad and I rounded up the ones responsible doing your work for you."

"Can we talk?" Irene asked coming to his side and gripping his elbow.

Ryu looked down at where she was touching his arm, but he didn't move when she tried to pull him into a more secluded area. He watched as the other C.I.A. agents and most likely local authorities worked to collect the men. Brad leaned against a tree and took out his flask and raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't bother to hide the fact that he was eavesdropping. "We are talking," Ryu answered.

"I haven't seen you in three years," Irene hissed. "We're married! You can't just vanish without a word for three years! And here you are on the other side of the world. Our home is in the states in our cute little studio apartment above the antique shop," she whispered.

"My home is in the Hayabusa Village with my clan," Ryu answered.

"Fine, then take me back home with you," Irene said. She ran her fingers through her short blonde hair.

"It is not your home. I don't want you there."

"Then maybe you shouldn't have married me!" Irene shouted.

Ryu met Brad's eyes, the Chinaman raised a snowy white eyebrow at her exclamation and raised his flask in a toast in Hayabusa's direction. "I wouldn't have if you had told me the truth."

"But, I love you," Irene whispered. She reached up and touched his jaw, her fingertips gentle against his exposed skin.

"Love means nothing to a shinobi. I have a duty and being with you has caused me to fail in those duties. I have a mission," Ryu said. He reached up and pushed aside her hand. He wrapped his scarf more securely over his neck and lower face before he walked past her towards Brad.

He paused when he felt Irene latch her arms around his waist from behind. "At least tell me a way to contact you. A cell phone number? An email? A mailing address? Something!"

"Move on, Irene Lew," he said.

"There's someone else, isn't there?" Irene whispered.

Ryu could feel a headache blossoming throughout his neck and back of his head as his tension increased. "My clan comes first. My father never approved of our marriage and you know I have certain obligations that I cannot make with you."

"We can adopt," she suggested.

"Or we can both move on," Ryu said. He gently untangled her arms from around him and made his way to Brad. He took the flask from the Chinaman's hand and drained half the sake from within before shoving it back to his fellow DOA tournament fighter.

"Give Kasumi my best," Brad said toasting Ryu again and then finishing the flask himself.

Ryu didn't acknowledge the comment, nor did he turn to look at Irene though he could hear her sobs. In a swirl of green oak leaves he vanished from their sight and reappeared a good distance away. He had a mission to finish and then he needed to go home.

* * *

_A/N: Our favorite duo will soon be crossing paths with various DOA participants! Who do you most look forward to Kasumi and Ryu running into? Brad is my favorite character outside of the two. Also, thank you to those whom are reviewing: Kaneshiro-Sama, The Dragon Kunoichi, and paqotote. You rock!_

_2/9/14_


	4. Chapter 4

**Heir Apparent **

**Chapter Four:**

Ryu had been away for three weeks this time. Kasumi had been living in his remotely located home for about four months and during that time he'd possibly spent four weeks total actually present. It was an unfortunate part of their current arrangement, but it was consistent and preferable to her routine company being the assassins from her village. Ryu looked forward to the sparring session they would have in the morning and the day that would be spent building the cabin and hunting for the dinner. Though, she'd almost completed the cabin even with the additions to the original blueprint and had done a fine job of it. Even the trees she had fell with her taijutsu had been acceptable.

He wondered what the old weapons' master Muramasa would have taught Kasumi in his absence. Her skill with the sword and her knowledge of the environment were improved every time he returned to his cabin. Thinking about Kasumi and what she was doing was preferable to dwelling on his latest mission or on the guilty feelings he had regarding a certain someone. Over the years he'd developed an affinity to the Taoism way of thought and believed in yin and yang. As long as he could balance out the brutality of his life with something sweet and pleasant he could achieve harmony. How else was he to deal with fends, mass murderers, and terrorists otherwise?

He had two duffle bags strapped to his back. Normally he only had one, but he'd purchased a second one so that he could conceal the surprise he'd purchased for his residential guest. On his route back from his mission he'd stopped in Tokyo and bought Kasumi some clothes as a belated Christmas present— two pair of blue jeans, four shirts — two long-sleeved and two short-sleeved, goose down winter jacket that was easily collapsable for travel, a pair of boots, wool hiking socks, and embarrassingly some underwear. He'd crammed the clothing articles inside of a large tote bag that had a cherry blossom tree embroidered across it which he promptly stuffed in his duffle bag to hide. While he was in the city he'd seen electronic billboards advertising for Tina's rock band performance that would be happening soon during the Chinese New Year celebration first in Tokyo and then the next night in Kyoto.

When he reached his village he went to his father's home first to give the clan leader the majority of the money he'd made on his last mission. Ryu only kept fifteen percent of his earnings — the rest went to the good of the Hayabusa clan. It was the same for everyone that took jobs. His father wasn't home at first, so Ryu went to the computer in his father's office and used his father's wireless printer to print off the pictures from his phone's camera that he'd taken for Kasumi during the Ice Festival. After they printed he picked them up and waved them in the air to dry them faster before he tucked them away inside his extra duffle bag.

He had secured the evidence not a moment too soon because he could hear his father opening his front door. Ryu waited for him in the hallway, arms folded over his chest and leaning against the wall in a casual stance.

"Ryu," Joe greeted. "I trust your mission was a success."

"Yes," Ryu answered. "The money has already been placed in our accounts."

His father stared at him for a long while without saying a word. Ryu accepted his leader's inspection in silence. "You are my heir apparent, are you not?"

"Yes," Ryu answered. He was the heir for the clan. Why would his father ask that?

"You've been gone for long periods of time and not just on missions. Do not think your behavior had gone unnoticed, my son."

"I do not know how that is your business. I am here when you have needed me and succeeded in all missions laid before me," Ryu said. The muscles in his back and shoulders were tensing as he could sense his father's disturbed chi.

"Where have you been? Have you been seeing that American woman? Are you working to create an heir to pass on the legacy of your dragon blood? I never approved of that marriage and yet my scouts say that you haven't been to America in years. Is that true or are you sneaking past everyone?" Joe asked. "And do not tell me it is none of my business. The line of succession is my business."

"I have been seeking solitude in the mountains," Ryu answered. His hands were clenched into fists at his side. He realized his duties and he knew that Irene could not help him in performing his duties.

"That American," Joe said spitting the last word. "What does she know of our ninja ways? Or our values?"

"I am seeking an annulment of the marriage. Or a divorce. Whichever is easier," Ryu said. His voice was stoic and unemotional.

His father's facial expression softened. "I will help you with the paperwork. Consider it done. I assume you are seeking more suitable options?"

"I really just want to go home to my fortress of solitude for a while," Ryu said.

Joe nodded. "Very well. I will send a falcon for you if I need you again." The falcons of their clan were apt creatures. They wouldn't fly to a location, but to a person.

Ryu hurried out of his father's house grateful that the conversation was over. He didn't want to think about it. All he wanted to do was go home and enjoy some peace and quiet. Though, part of him was looking forward to Kasumi's reaction when she saw the presents he brought her.

It was near midnight by the time he'd finally reached the not-so-small-anymore cabin. It should have taken him longer to cross the distance, but he was motivated. He drastically reduced the travel time by teleporting more than was recommended or safe, but his impatience to be home was too great. He could see that Kasumi had been busy during his last absence. The cabin was mostly finished, the roof was complete and the walls were all up. It was mostly inside that needed to be refined at this point. And she'd finished building a porch while he was gone.

He took off his mask as he entered the cabin and made his way directly for Kasumi's room. She'd want to know that he was back even if it was the middle of the night. He'd promised her that when he returned he would let her know immediately. He could feel his heart constrict at the sight of her. She was sleeping restlessly crying out softly in her sleep. She was having another night terror. Muramasa had confided in him that she had them practically every night whenever he wasn't there. It was the old man's opinion that the young lady was severely traumatized and that the peace and tranquility of the woods was healthy for her.

Ryu kneeled next to the head of her pallet on the floor and gently held her shoulder. "Kasumi, wake up. You're having a bad dream."

Kasumi's hazel eyes were the color of amber in the moonlight streaming through her open window. "Hayabusa, you're back," she said quietly. She began to sit up, but Ryu kept his hand on her shoulder to keep her down. She might have been strong, but she didn't have the leverage to defeat him.

"Don't get up," he said. "I just wanted you to know that I'm back. Go back to sleep without the bad dreams. I'll watch over you, okay?" He squeezed her shoulder in reassurance before he scooted a short distance from her to brace his back against the wall in his usual position. He sat with one knee bent and the other outstretched over the head of her pallet. "I'll be over here. I'm not going anywhere."

Kasumi sighed and turned onto her side facing him. She was snuggled inside of a thick furred blanket no doubt she'd hunted the animal down and skinned it herself. She had turned into quite the wilderness survivor over the years. "Sometimes, I feel that sleep is over-rated," she confessed.

"Would you rather talk?" Ryu asked arching his eyebrow.

"I should be finished with the porch by the end of the week," Kasumi said. "I need to sand down the rough edges and that takes a while when doing it by hand."

"What will you do with yourself when you finish this cabin?" Hayabusa asked.

"Master Muramasa has taught me many things. He brought several books with him. I've been learning about the various herbs and roots of the forest. My mother used to teach me such things, but I only knew the basics before. I'm afraid my studies in recent years were most focused on survival," Kasumi said.

"That is understandable," Ryu said. He should probably brush up on his studies on herbs himself. And if Muramasa brought a great many books that could explain the difficulty he had transporting the old man to the cabin. Books were heavy after all. "How is your leg?"

Kasumi rubbed at her scarred right leg. "It only bothers me on occasion. I've been able to resume most of my normal exercises and I've learned quite a few more sword techniques since last you were here. Ones that allow me to fight with less dependency on my kicks. Skills that would be useful if you ever let me help you against those fends."

It was not her first comment that implied she was training so that she might stand beside him in battle. He'd told her stories of the fends, but he never intended to have her be part of that deadly world. That was his responsibility, not hers. "I expect you to impress me in the morning," Ryu said. There were few things in life that brought him joy these days, but the time he spent with Kasumi was the most precious. Mostly, because she was the only one that never asked him for anything.

"Maybe even I can teach the super ninja something new," Kasumi said. "Why do you have two duffle bags?"

Ryu glanced down at his side where he'd laid the two bags on top of each other. "Because one has your Christmas present inside. Do you want it now?"

"Really?" Kasumi sat up immediately, the fur blanket pooled down at her waist. She wore the gray training uniform. He unzipped the extra duffle bag and pulled out the cherry blossom tote bag. Kasumi traced her fingers over the embroidery with a small smile. She then opened the tote and looked within. She pulled out the articles of clothing, lingering on the down coat. "I like my deer skin coat, but this is stylish," she said. It was a silver down coat that was the official Japanese Olympic Team coat. She rolled it in on itself and laughed at how small it could be condensed before she slipped it over her body and smiled at him. "This is perfect! I was a little worried because this week it had been growing colder."

"There's more," Ryu said. He felt satisfied by her reaction.

Kasumi laid out the clothing and when she reached the underwear that he had buried at the base of the bag, Ryu could feel his ears burning in embarrassment. "So practical," Kasumi murmured. "Thank you, Ryu," she said with a smile.

"Not always practical," Ryu admitted. He held out the photographs for her. Kasumi took them, her finger tips brushing against his palm. He could see her eyes well up with tears as she traced over Lei Fang's image and then went through the small collection.

"How did you know about this place?" Kasumi whispered.

"I read an entry in your journal," Ryu admitted. He wasn't going to admit to how many entries and which ones. "It was addressed to Ayane, I'm sorry for invading your privacy."

Kasumi didn't look up from the pictures. "It's fine. If you want, you can read it. There are quite a few letters addressed to you in there."

Of that he was aware. "I'd rather hear your thoughts from your own lips rather than read about them in a book," Ryu said.

Kasumi threw her arms around his neck and he could feel her warm tears slide onto his exposed neck. Hesitantly, Ryu returned the hug and wrapped his arms around Kasumi's small frame and held her against him. "Thank you, Ryu, so much. You have no idea what this means to me." She pulled away slightly and wiped at her cheeks furiously trying to hide the evidence of her tears. "I can't believe you bought me underwear. That must have been mortifying for you."

"It was an experience I'd like to forget," he admitted loosening his arms from around her. "Maybe you should get some sleep now."

"Not a bad idea," Kasumi said with a yawn. She blinked her eyes heavily and crawled back to her sleeping pallet wearing her new coat and before long she'd fallen asleep.

Ryu watched her sleep peacefully. He stayed vigilant for another hour until he was confident that no one had followed after him. He had traps all throughout the forest, but that didn't mean he thought they were safe. He was never foolish enough to think that.

* * *

**OoO**

Kasumi laughed as she saw Ryu struggle to pull the plant up by the roots. "No, no, genius super ninja. It's like this," she said reaching down and covering his larger hands with her smaller ones. "The trick is to lift right here." She increased pressure over the central bulb and the plant just popped right out of the earth. "Wasn't that less painful?"

"Indeed," Ryu said. "And what's the deal with calling me a genius super ninja?"

"Well, you are a super ninja, are you not?" she asked.

"Yes, but I'm not a genius," Ryu said frowning.

Kasumi reached across them and pressed her thumb gently against the worry line between Ryu's eyebrows. "Of course you are. You decided to share this little piece of paradise with me. That makes you the smartest man I know," Kasumi said with a grin.

"Considering the other men you know are generally out to kill you I'm not sure you're the best judge of character," Ryu said in a bland tone.

"You forget I was raised to be the leader of a ninja clan. I learned to see underneath the masks of others. I am not fooled by a friendly facade. Actions speak louder than words. And everything I know tells me that I'm lucky that you are my friend. It's hard to believe that a year ago I was celebrating Chinese New Years with Lei Fang and now I'll be celebrating it with you and Muramasa, unless you have to head out for another mission soon. A lot can change in a year." She brushed her hands on the legs of her pants and stood. "Come, let's head back to our training field."

She led the way to the thick copse of bamboo that they often used for their sparring with Ryu following close behind. "I've got a move I'm just dying to try out on you," Kasumi said taking off at a run.

Ryu increased his speed and was soon running alongside her. His long, brown hair was pulled into a high pony tail and his green eyes flashed with anticipation. This was the Hayabusa she loved most — the one that was ready for adventure. The one that she remembered from when he was fourteen and she was nine. He'd been her hero then and he was her hero now.

"Okay, I expect you to impress me," Ryu said.

"No problem," Kasumi said. She bit her lip to keep from smiling in anticipation. "Begin!" she called and they began to circle one another in defensive stances. She knew he would always wait. That was his style. He was her tag-team partner in the Dead or Alive tournaments and more than anyone she could predict his moves and he could predict hers.

She feigned an attack, but he wasn't fooled. So she went for a second attack, but he caught her leg in a grab that had her twisted in the air. She back flipped away and barely deflected his triple spinning kick. The moment he landed and faced her she did her move and jumped so that she landed with her legs on his shoulders, her stomach in his face. She used his momentary shock to shift her weight and momentum to flip him to his back. She jumped into the air in a swirl of cherry blossoms and landed on his chest in a triple kick.

Hayabusa lay on the ground panting. "Nice move," he said. His face was red as a tomato.

Kasumi immediately kneeled at his side. "Are you okay?" she asked in concern as she placed her fingertips against his throat to feel his pulse was strong and fast.

"Fine," he said. He reached up and gripped her shoulders and flipped her over him so that he was now laying on top of her. "Do you yield?"

"Never," Kasumi said. She struggled to loosen herself form his hold, but to no avail. She teleported into a swirl of sakura blossoms and stood beside him.

"You can't use your ninpo all the time," Ryu admonished.

"Sure I can."

"No, you can't," Ryu said pulling out the sword he had strapped across his back.

Kasumi unsheathed the wakizashi from across her back. It was a sword worn traditionally at the hip of a samurai, but given her petite stature it worked well across her back. "Want to see what I've learned since you've been gone?"

Ryu didn't answer, but lunged at her with his dragon sword. Kasumi parried appropriately and managed to deflect the blow. She shifted her weight and used her smaller size to slip pass his defenses. She hit him in the low back with the flat of her sword — an attack that would sting more than injure.

They continued to exchange blows back and forth, deflecting and parring with skill. When Ryu slipped past Kasumi's defense — which was twice as often as she slipped past his — he also inflicted the sting of his sword rather than a true injury.

Ryu sheathed his blade back across his back. "You've been improving. Tell me, how would you feel about going to Kyoto?" Ryu asked.

"It's a beautiful city," Kasumi said. "When I was a child I used to fantasize that I lived there and spent my days talking with the koi and admiring the elegance of the geisha. I can hardly go there now. It's too risky."

"I want to take you there. I have my ninja suits custom made there and I want to have one made for you. They are sleek and very protective with kevlar sewn in to protect you from wayward kunai and bullets." Ryu reached up and adjusted his ponytail — it had grown messy during their sparring match. "And swords," he added.

"I certainly appreciate the idea," Kasumi said. She slipped her sword back into the sheath across her back.

"If you are thinking of leaving here in the spring you must have such gear or I will not agree to it," Ryu said. "I will protect you. We won't be in Kyoto for longer than three days."

Did he really think that he could stop her when she did decide to leave? "They'll know that you helped me," Kasumi said.

"They'll never know you were in Kyoto. It will be very crowded by the festivities of the Chinese New Year celebration. It's in early February," Ryu said ignoring her concerns.

Kasumi was so tempted. "I really want to agree to this," she said biting her lower lip.

"And while we're there we can catch Tina's concert. Her band is on their tour of Asia. She's performing in Kyoto during the celebration," Ryu said.

"I'm selfish, I want to go," Kasumi confessed. "I am not going to argue with you anymore."

"Good. We leave in two days. We'll take the bullet train. I took the liberty of securing us tickets under assumed identities. I hope you don't mind, but we'll be Mr. and Mrs. Takashi Toyota."

Kasumi laughed and rubbed at her scarred thigh absently. "Okay, Mr. Toyota. For now, I'm going to enjoy a lovely hot springs I discovered a short walk from here and soak all these bruises you just inflicted upon my poor person."

"You gave as well as you took," Ryu argued. He rubbed at his low back and cringed. "Maybe you need to show me this hot springs as well."

"Follow me," Kasumi said. "If you can keep up! And no ninpo!" she cried out as she took off at a run. She laughed again, light-hearted and free and memories of her childhood when she would take off at a run with her siblings and Hayabusa chasing after her. She was always faster, but that didn't mean they didn't try to catch her.

Hayabusa followed after her, allowing her to keep a head start. Once again, he found himself chasing after the kunoichi.

* * *

**OoO**

Kasumi barely managed to stay ahead of Ryu. She stood at the edge of the hot springs with her back to him and stripped down to her underwear and gently laid the borrowed training uniform and chest bindings on a nearby rock. Then she did a back flip dive into the water.

His heart constricted when she dived in with a slight hint of fear. How did she know the water was deep enough to dive in? She could have broken her neck. What if she had broken her neck trying such a fool hardy stunt in his absence? He might never have found her body.

Kasumi rose up from the surface laughing while she tread the water. "By the time you join me the hot springs will have cooled!" she teased.

Ryu frowned, but didn't answer. He noticed strange white monkeys grouped together in the water a dozen meters from Kasumi. They hollered at Kasumi and his presence for a little then ignored them. Ryu started to strip out of his own clothing and laid his gear next to Kasumi's articles of clothing and weapons before he slipped into the water. Kasumi might have been experienced at diving into the waters, but he wasn't about to take a needless risk.

The warm water worked miracles on his aching muscles. However, the wound in his shoulder that he'd received on his last mission began to bleed. He hadn't had time to stitch it up properly.

"Your shoulder," Kasumi murmured. She turned away from him and went near the far shore of the hot springs before she ventured back in his direction with her hands full of mud. Ryu felt himself growing nervous at her proximity. She seemed totally non-plussed by her state of undress. The thing about hazel eyes was that they were never one color. Today her eyes appeared like golden honey as they focused on his wound in concern. "Trust me," she said meeting his eyes and asking permission. He gave a brief nod and she began to layer the mud on his wound. "It's a clean mud. I was surprised to find it here. It has medicinal purposes that aid in wound healing. This wound is too old for me to stitch up, but at least it's a clean cut."

Ryu swallowed thickly and tried to avert his eyes because she was standing right in front of him and with his height he could see — everything. She turned away and he breathed a sigh of relief. And that's when he saw the scars scattered across her back. He believed he recognized the deep one that allowed her to write her last journal entry. He reached for her from behind to examine her back more closely.

"Can you still count each vertebrae?" Kasumi asked quietly in an attempt to break the tension. She dipped her hands into the water and washed away the residual mud.

"You've filled out these last few months. You're not in danger of blowing away with a gust of wind," Ryu said. She packed on a few pounds of muscle since she first crossed paths with him in late summer. He traced his finger along a particularly nasty knot of scar tissue that would have previously been hidden by her chest bindings.

Kasumi looked over her shoulder to see where Ryu's fingers lingered on her back. "That one almost killed me. If it had been a few millimeters to the right I'd probably be paralyzed."

This was evidence that he needed to give her better protective ninja gear if she was to ever go into the field again. He knew she was a kunoichi and that eventually she'd want to leave. He needed to make sure she could survive when she did. He would try to convince her to see his private surgeon to make sure she was completely healthy. The same private surgeon he skipped on his route back after his last mission. Ryu released his grip on her shoulder. "My apologies," he said.

Kasumi shrugged and then continued on her way to collect more mud. "It's nothing. They are old wounds. Now you know why I didn't want you to wash me that first night."

He wanted to promise her that no harm would befall her again. The scars that marred her flesh were his fault. They were evidence of his failure to protect her. No doubt they were the result of the times he wasn't there to watch her back during his extended missions where she was left to fend for herself. He would find a way to stop the pointless hunt for her death. She had suffered enough.

Ryu cleared his throat. "So, tell me about your time with Leifang and Jann Lee."

Kasumi laughed softly, the sound akin to bells chiming. "It's funny, really. The best friends I have are my rivals in a Dead or Alive tournament." She moved back toward him and slathered on a little more of the mud. "This needs to dry to really be effective, but it will do for now. I will gather some more later. You'll need it for at least three days."

"Hn," Ryu acknowledged.

"How about an exchange? I'll tell you about how I became friends with Leifang and Jann Lee if you'll tell me about the fiends that inflicted the wound upon your shoulder," Kasumi offered.

Ryu's eyes narrowed. How did she know that it was fiends that wounded him, and not ninja assassins or terrorists?

Kasumi laughed again as if reading his mind. "Don't give me that look, Hayabusa. I know no mere mortal could have injured you thusly."

"Very well," Ryu agreed. However, he was still suspicious. This wasn't the first time she'd made a reference to something it would have been impossible for her to know. He didn't for a minute believe that her fortune telling hobby was anything more than a passing amusement. He would discover the truth eventually. "You first," he pressed.

Kasumi smiled and closed her eyes, tilting her head up toward the darkening sky of the late afternoon with her long cinnamon colored hair loose and floating about her in the water. "It all started when I ran into an irate young Chinese lady yelling at me for having the upcoming match scheduled with her rival. She'd heard I had won the previous tournament and wanted to make sure that her rival wouldn't be eliminated before she had a chance to best him."

Ryu listened intently as she regaled him with tales of her friendship with the Chinese team. He was partly distracted because he kept worrying that she'd drown in the hot springs — she simply seemed too relaxed. His shoulder felt substantially better. He'd have to analyze the properties of the mud salve. It must have had to do with the sulfuric content of the hot springs. The white monkeys were quiet and peaceful as if they too were listening to Kasumi's stories.

The conversation with his father earlier echoed through his mind. Part of him wondered what Kasumi would be like around children. No doubt she would capture their attention with stories. He remembered when they were children, well, rather she was a child and he was in his first few years of teenager-hood. He often felt as if he was a babysitter for her and Ayane rather than a friend. But then, didn't all adolescent boys feel annoyed when the baby sisters of their best friend tagged along? Of course at the time, Hayate and Kasumi didn't know that Ayane was their sister, just a friend near to Kasumi in age. At the end of the day they would sit around a camp fire during their mini-adventures in the forests before he and Hayate went on real missions. It was Kasumi that would tell the most lively of stories. She was the only one capable of drawing the stoic Ryu Hayabusa's attention even with a ridiculous story about a heroic monkey king. He had forgotten how much he loved her story telling. Missions against fiends intent on destroying the world and running from assassins tended to make it difficult to focus on the simple pleasures.

"Okay, Hayabusa, you're turn," Kasumi said. Her eyes were open and she was staring at him expectantly. "Don't think you'll distract me and get out of telling a story yourself like you did when we were kids."

Ryu sighed. He was planning to reenact that exact technique. "Why are you calling me Hayabusa again?" he asked, hoping to distract her.

Kasumi shook her head. "Because, today there is a strange barrier between us. You are behaving more like the super ninja Hayabusa, than my friend Ryu."

"Barrier?" Ryu scoffed. He gestured toward the pile of their clothes at the edge of the hotsprings.

Kasumi folded her arms across her chest and set her chin stubbornly. "Metaphorically."

"It's hard to talk about the fiends, Kasumi," Ryu admitted. "I wanted this home in the solitude of the forest to escape those nightmarish creatures." And he didn't want to ruin the protective bubble of innocence he'd layered upon Kasumi. He wanted her safe. She was the precious, cheerful person in his life. He didn't want to introduce any more darkness into her life.

"You entrusted Ayane to help you," Kasumi said quietly.

Ryu watched her closely. She waded through the water toward the white monkeys and further away from him. Was she jealous that he'd solicited Ayane's help on a previous mission instead of hers? "Kasumi, that had nothing to do with a lack of trust with you. You are the person I trust most in this world." It was strange, but he meant it. Who'd have thought that annoying nine-year old who told the most fantastic stories would one day become the young woman that he trusted with his sanctuary and his unmasked self?

"It's getting late," Kasumi said. She reached out and ran her fingers across the base of the neck of one of the monkeys and scratched it behind the ear. The creature turned its head toward her in affection.

She was going to let him skip out on his half of the story telling. She did that as kids too. It would be his turn to speak around the fire and she'd distract the others freeing him from the obligation.

Ryu watched in silence as she climbed out of the springs and with her back to him began to place her clothing back on. Ryu waited until her bindings were back in place before he joined her on shore.

"One day I will tell you, Kasumi. You have enough nightmares for now, you don't need the burden of mine as well," Ryu said. He shucked his pants back on over his hips. "The fiends are creatures from hell and it's the duty of my clan to keep them in check."

"I understand," Kasumi said quietly. She cinched the belt around her uniform tight at her waist.

Clearly she didn't understand. Ryu took hold of her shoulders and forced her to face him. Her long cinnamon colored hair hid half her face so he brushed it aside with on hand so he could look into her eyes. "I have to know you are safe, Kasumi. I have to know that there is someone good in this world. You give me hope and without hope I have no chance of fighting off the fiends successfully. However, the wound in my shoulder happened because of distraction. I was outnumbered and simply moved too slow. My ally on the mission was false and betrayed me."

"You should have allies you can trust," Kasumi murmured.

"I know, but the safest ally is yourself," Ryu said.

"You can't do everything by yourself," she argued.

He was aware of that limitation. "No, but at least let me try."

Kasumi reached up and covered his hand on her shoulder with her own. "You are not the only one that worries." She then twisted out of his grip and started back toward his home a few kilometers away.

* * *

_A/N: I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter! Thank you to: The Dragon Kunoichi, Kaneshiro-Sama, pagotote, and angeles372 for taking the time to review._


	5. Chapter 5

**Heir Apparent**

**Chapter Five:**

The new clothes that Ryu brought her were very comfortable, especially the boots and jeans. Kasumi snuggled inside the warmth of her down feather winter coat while she waited near the outside tracks of a small and infrequently used train station just south of Tokyo. It would take away an hour to their trip south to Kyoto and it helped them to stay under the radar. It was one of those win-win situations.

While she couldn't hear him, she could sense as Ryu drew near. Like Kasumi, he was dressed in the casual clothing of a civilian, but there was nothing casual about his posture and the sleek predator-like stride in his step. His long hair was tied up in a long pony tail, but the length of it was hidden inside of his overcoat. He handed her a Ramune drink from one of the vending machines. "Here you go, Mrs. Toyota," he said with a slight smile and his emerald eyes alert as usual.

"Why thank you, Mr. Toyota," Kasumi answered back taking the soda. It was the green melon flavor — her favorite. How did he know that? "Is our train on time?"

"This is the Japanese Rail," Ryu answered looking past her to the digital public clock on the wall. There was a poster under the clock advertising for the Chinese New Year festival in Tokyo. Hopefully, most people would attend the festival in Tokyo instead of the Kyoto one. "The JR is always on time."

Kasumi took a sip from her bottle, but was careful to keep her hood up so as to conceal her hair. There was no need to tempt fate. If the trains were on time they had another twenty minutes to wait. She almost jumped when Ryu placed his arm around her shoulders and drew her close against him. She knew it was just part of the act. Surely, Mr. and Mrs. Toyota would be affectionate and keep one another warm in the cold winter weather.

"Don't look now, but to our seven o'clock is a group of suspicious individuals. I was forced to utilize a true picture of you for your identification. It may have triggered the search engines of a few bounty hunters," Ryu whispered.

Bounty hunters? Had her brother resorted to using bounty hunters? The idea was distasteful. Though, it was far more likely that one of the clan members decided to incorporate bounty hunters so that he might be the one to claim the prize of her head. Such a shinobi would be known as a hero regardless of their means.

Time slipped by slowly, but the bounty hunters made no move toward them. Without incident their train arrived and she and Ryu slipped on board. His hand hand moved from her shoulder to the small of her back as he gently ushered her toward their seats. They were at the back of a car, no one could sneak behind them that way. He took the aisle seat and she sat by the window.

She took off her coat and Ryu stuffed it into the overhead compartment above their seats. She had a silk scarf wrapped around her hair to hide the cinnamon colored strands from observant eyes. Hair dye might have been better, but Ryu had assured her that her hair color wasn't too uncommon. Ever since she'd acquired fame for her championship of the Dead or Alive tournament she had a substantial fan following. Many Japanese young ladies had hair dyed the same color of hers. It was quite the fad.

The bullet train started away from Tokyo and then it would continue southwest to Kyoto. So far it seemed there were no suspicious persons in their car. The group at the train station remained at the station. Kasumi and Ryu had been on the train for a half hour before either of them spoke.

"We'll visit with my tailor first," Ryu said. He was referring to the husband and wife couple that created his ninja gear. He'd explained that the couple were trained surgeons that inherited the family business of supplying the Hayabusa clan's fiend-resistant armor. Who knew best how to create armor than the one's that surgically repaired the battle wounds?

"And then we'll see the Golden Temple?" Kasumi asked hopefully. She was anticipating seeing the schools of koi fish within the gentle waters surrounding the sacred temple. And the geisha would be there. She remembered fighting against a young lady at the last tournament that wore the garb of a geisha. While the girl's name escaped her memory, she remembered the elegance of her stances.

"We'll have three days," Ryu said. "Tina's concert is tomorrow night." He patted his shirt pocket. "I have our tickets right here."

Kasumi turned her attention to the window. The train was moving too fast to appreciate the scenery and it only served to make her slightly motion sick. She focused her attention on the seat in front of her and waited for the nausea to pass. She glanced to her side to see that Ryu had his eyes closed and his arms folded over his chest.

As if sensing her gaze on him, Ryu opened his emerald eyes. "The window isn't a good idea," he said quietly.

"No joke. I felt seasick even trying," Kasumi complained. "I'm not used to just sitting still and we have four hours on this trip."

Ryu leaned over and pulled out the backpack he had shoved under his seat. He unzipped it and pulled out a sleek rectangle with a black back and a grey screen. He held it out for Kasumi. "This should keep you entertained. I took the liberty of ordering a few books I think you will enjoy."

Hesitantly, Kasumi took the object. It looked like a small computer tablet of some sort. Ryu reached over and clicked something at the top of it. The screen lit up and Kasumi's eyes lit up in excitement. It was an electronic library! She scrolled through the collection of electronic books until she found one that looked tempting. "Thank you," Kasumi said looking back at Ryu, but he was sleeping, or pretending to sleep more likely.

The train ride was uneventful. Ryu had purchased her some pocky when the attendant rolled by with her cart earlier, but otherwise they didn't interact with any other passengers or the staff. Ryu gathered their bags and handed the smaller backpack to Kasumi. She slipped it over her shoulders and it fit comfortably over her lightweight winter coat. She jumped up and down a little to keep warm while they waited outside for Ryu to orient himself. After he gained his bearings they would start for his tailor's place.

Kasumi used his moment of distraction to try to bring some fun into her serious friend's life. It was snowing lightly, but a couple of inches of snow rested upon the ground radiant in the mid-morning light. She scooped up a handful in her gloved hand and formed it into a pair of compact balls.

"Okay, we're on schedule. Follow after me," Ryu said turning toward Kasumi. She took the opportunity to toss a snowball at him. He ducked out of the way for the first one. "Really, we don't have time for games—." The second snowball hit him squarely in the mouth.

* * *

**OoO**

She threw a snowball at him. And she hit him. Ryu calmly wiped the residual snow from his mouth and glared at the laughing young woman standing in front of him. "Think that's funny, do you?" he asked quietly.

Kasumi stopped laughing abruptly. Her nervousness palpable as she averted her eyes from him.

He kneeled down and scooped up a fistful of snow himself. He tossed it at her and hit her squarely in the chest. His lips were spread in a smile. "I suppose it is somewhat funny."

Kasumi bent at the hips and picked up two handfuls of snow and ran towards him laughing gleefully as she jumped toward him with her arms around his neck and shoving the snow to the back of his neck. Ryu cringed his neck back to try to keep the snow from creeping into his coat. His original instinct was to utilize a judo throw to divert Kasumi's mass as she came barreling towards him, but he decided to let her past his defenses for now. This was the same young woman who prior to their train trip had never eaten pocky before.

Kasumi's laughter grew and her lips brushed across Ryu's exposed throat. They both became abruptly silent. Kasumi eased her arms away from his neck and Ryu reached up to brush off the residual snow from her attack. He cleared his throat, determined to ignore the slight awkward feeling. "We don't have far to go," he said.

His contacts in Kyoto were the Himura family. They had been connected to the Hayabusa clan for centuries. They had a business for the public as tailors, but for the elect few they were more. They were surgeons and the makers of custom ninja gear. They also had an elaborate underground system of tunnels and rooms for travel weary ninja including a training dojo. He intended for the majority of their Kyoto stay to be underground.

"After you, Mr. Toyota," Kasumi said. She reached up and adjusted the silk scarf around her hair and then adjusted the hood of her coat. It had been knocked down at her running attack on him earlier.

"We'll go together, Mrs. Toyota," Ryu said offering his elbow. Kasumi silently stepped next to him and slid her arm through his. The snow continued to fall lightly. Hopefully, that wouldn't lead to the festival being closed. Perhaps it would thin the crowds, which could be good or bad. Good as it would make it easier to spot suspicious individuals, bad as it would make it harder to blend in with the masses.

The wind started to pick up and more people were on the streets braving the weather in need of a quick trip to the market for food. Ryu released Kasumi's arm from his and wrapped his arm around her shoulder and drew her close to his side. It wasn't long before he made it to the Himura's shop. The husband and wife team greeted them promptly. The wife took them to the back rooms and then the subsequent lower levels while the husband kept up appearances on the street level.

Kasumi took off her backpack and coat and stood before Mrs. Himura. She looked at Ryu in askance, but he shrugged.

"I cannot make measurements if you are dressed," Mrs. Himura clucked. "Come child, it is just an old woman and a man claiming to be your husband. Hayabusa turn around and give the girl some privacy."

Kasumi cleared her throat. "I'm not a girl. I am a woman," Kasumi said. She began to strip out of her outer layer of clothing. "A shinobi cannot afford to be modest. I assume I may wear my bindings and underwear?"

Mrs. Himura nodded. "Of course, one cannot fight without proper undergarments."

Ryu turned his back on Kasumi to give her privacy even if she claimed she didn't require it. He'd seen most of her in the hot springs, not to say he didn't appreciate her figure, she was an impressive athlete through and through. He kept his eye trained on the doors leading into their compartment.

"I will need to fit you for proper undergarments too," Mrs. Himura said.

"Ryu, you wear custom-made underwear?" Kasumi asked, the laugh evident in her question.

Mrs. Himura cleared her throat. "As will you, young lady. If Master Hayabusa believes you are worthy of our unique shinobi gear we will see to it that you are properly attired."

Ryu shifted his weight. He didn't want his underwear to be part of the discussion. Mrs. Himura made humming noises as she took Kasumi's measurements. He could hear the sound of Kasumi's bindings hit the floor. He smirked. She was getting measured for her undergarments. He'd be sure to tease her about it later.

"Master Hayabusa it would normally take a few weeks to create the specifications you requested, but luckily your estimates on Kasumi's size were pretty accurate. We should be able to complete it within the three day period you requested," Mrs. Himura said.

Ryu turned around and saw that Kasumi was fully dressed once more and looking at him funny. Maybe Mrs. Himura could have left the part out about him giving Kasumi's measurements. DOATEC had rather accurate statistics on the kunoichi.

"We'll need a room with you," Ryu said.

"Of course, I had one prepared," Mrs. Himura said with a coy smile.

Ryu's eyes narrowed. Only one room? They knew there would be two of them.

"Third door on the right just down the hall," Mrs. Himura said. "There are two beds, so stop hyperventilating."

"I wasn't hyperventilating," Ryu argued in annoyance. The downside of utilizing the Himuras was that they felt that they could tease him. "I will compensate you generously for your work."

"I know you will, Master Hayabusa," Mrs. Himura said. She gathered her measuring tape and notes. "I am looking forward to making your gear, Kasumi," she said.

"Thank you, ma'am," Kasumi said. "Third door on the right?"

* * *

**OoO**

"Can we stop at an Internet cafe?" Kasumi asked. They had left the Himuras' shop and were making their way toward the Golden Temple. It was a few kilometers away by foot, but it was hardly a challenge for two shinobi in their physical condition.

"You want to check your email?" Ryu asked, glancing down at her with a cocked eyebrow.

Kasumi nodded. "It's been over a year. I haven't exactly had access."

"We can make some time for that," Ryu agreed. He glanced around the shops near them. There were Internet cafes on practically every block. "Here," he said, placing his hand at the small of Kasumi's back and leading her toward one of the more crowded cafes. The busier the shop they easier they would be forgotten. He paid for a thirty minute time slot and led Kasumi to a cubicle in the far corner of the upstairs room near the fire-escape.

Kasumi wasted no time in opening her email using an incognito window— some things came naturally to ninjas. It was important to both physically and virtually remain incognito. She groaned.

"What's wrong?" Ryu asked, his voice laced with concern. He peered over her shoulder as he pulled a chair next to hers in their designated cubicle. It looked like she had hundreds of emails. "I see," he said. He reached past her for the mouse and adjusted some settings on the email to sort her mail and within moments she had twenty emails and the other hundreds had been transferred into the spam section. "That should make it easier to navigate."

Kasumi turned to him, her eyes wide in amazement. "How did you do that?"

"We only have twenty-six minutes. I suggest you read now and ask questions later," Ryu said. He focused on their surroundings for anything suspicious. So far their time in Kyoto had seemed to have gone mostly unnoticed.

"Oh!" Kasumi cried out. She clapped her hands together once in excitement. "Jann Lee wrote me about Tina's concert. He sent complimentary tickets if we want it for both her shows in Kyoto and her three shows in Tokyo next week," Kasumi explained. "He says he hopes I see this email in time to be of use. They are waiting at the Will Call under alias names."

"Convenient," Ryu said. He looked towards the clock on display in the room. They still had twenty minutes.

Kasumi clicked through her email and wrote back a few responses. She laughed softly. "Jann Lee is fast in his responses," she murmured. Then she opened the browser to view Kyoto's attractions. The Golden Temple remained the foremost request. "Looks like there will be tents sent up outside of the Fushimi Inari Shrine. That's where they filmed that running scene from Memoirs of a Geisha."

"I didn't realize you watched movies," Ryu said. It was strange to associate Kasumi with some of the modern conveniences such as internet and movies.

She shrugged. "Leifang had quite the collection."

"We can go there after the Golden Temple this evening," Ryu agreed. "We need to hurry. You have five minutes left. I suggest we leave before your time is officially over."

Kasumi nodded and logged out of her internet session. They climbed out the fire escape and vanished down the side streets. Kasumi paused at the front entrance of a busy pachinko shop. She tugged on Ryu's sleeve. "Can we? I can foretell that we will find fortune," she added with a wink.

Ryu suppressed a groan and nodded his head in assent. "You go ahead, I'll keep an eye out here," he said.

"No, you have to come too. It's no fun by myself," Kasumi said tugging on his sleeve more persistently. "Besides, you're the one with money," she added with a smile.

Ryu allowed himself to be drawn into the back corner of the shop. The whirling and chiming sounds of the pachinko machines drowned out any street noises from outside. There weren't many people on the streets due to the cold weather, they all seemed nice and warm inside gambling. Ryu exchanged a few bills into the appropriate tokens for the machines.

"Here's a couple of free ones," Kasumi said. They sat next to a person that smelled strongly of sake. No wonder the seats were available. Kasumi took a handful of tokens from Ryu and started playing her pachinko machine. Ryu didn't care to gamble, but he would on occasion place a coin into the machine whenever the shop owner gave him a dirty look.

"Awesome!" Kasumi cried out pumping her fists in the air as her machine began to flash lights and a siren sounded out from it. "I won!" She held one of the complementary buckets that were sitting on the floor and caught many coins spilling out of the machine. "What do I do now?" she asked turning to Ryu. She held the bucket close to her chest. "It's rather heavy."

Their drunken neighbor roused from his stupor. "Oh, fancy seeing you two here. I thought I was seeing things again," Brad Wong said with a cheeky grin. "You take that bucket to the front and they trade it out for yen," he explained. He pointed at Ryu. "Make him carry it for you. A lovely lady such as yourself shouldn't have to do such menial work," he said with a flirtatious wink. "Besides, that will give me a chance to flirt with you without your overly protective guardian."

"Brad!" Kasumi exclaimed. She shoved the bucket at Ryu and threw her arms around the alcoholic's neck. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

Ryu cleared his throat. He didn't think it was appropriate for Kasumi to be hugging on strange men. What did she really know about Brad Wong? The man was an alcoholic and a lecher.

"I don't think your chaperon likes me," Brad whispered loudly in Kasumi's ear.

Ryu could feel his blood pressure rising. They were supposed to be incognito in Kyoto. He shouldn't have agreed to this gambling activity.

"Could you exchange our winnings, Hayabusa?" Kasumi asked politely.

They were back to Hayabusa were they? At least she did say it was their winnings. "We'll go together. We should be going. You've drawn too much attention," Ryu answered quietly.

"Sorry, Brad. Maybe I'll see you around." Kasumi flashed the chinaman an apologetic smile and followed after Ryu to the exchange counter in the shop.

"I know this is a vacation, but try to keep a low profile," Ryu whispered.

Brad bumped them on his way out of the shop. "Ran out of booze," he said by way of explanation. "To answer your earlier question, I'm attending Tina's concert tomorrow." Brad waved his hand at someone across the street. "Did you get it?"

"I have a bottle of aspirin and six pack of bottled water you drunk!" a blond teenaged boy yelled back in a thick British accent. His bright blue eyes locked on Kasumi and his expression of annoyance quickly transformed into appreciation.

Ryu recognized Elliot from the last Dead or Alive tournament. He didn't need any other witnesses. He took hold of Kasumi's elbow and with their winnings tucked into his shoulder bag he teleported them away from the streets and into a park a kilometer away.

"Why did you do that?" Kasumi asked.

"We have an agenda if you want to have time for all your tourist stops," Ryu answered. He didn't want to admit it, but he'd felt unreasonably jealous when Kasumi had hugged Brad. And he also didn't like the way that blond youth had looked at Kasumi.

* * *

**OoO**

Kinkakuji, the Golden Temple, was a popular tourist attraction in Kyoto. The koi filled waters surrounding the Buddhist temple were charming. The temple was founded in the year 1397. The temple was later burned down by an insane novice monk in the nineteen fifties, but was rebuilt. The gold leaf overlay on the top two of the three floors were the reason for the moniker.

"Is it what you expected?" Ryu asked.

Kasumi felt relaxed as she fed a few pieces of fish food to the koi. Ryu had been kind enough to purchase a small bag for her from the tourist shop on the premises. The proceeds helped with charities and the upkeep of the temple. "It's so beautiful here, even in the dead of winter," she admitted. The temple was crowded, but not nearly as crowded as it would have been in the summer. She and Ryu blended in with the tourists decently.

Both Kasumi and Ryu could sense the approach of a friendly chi in their direction. Kasumi looked over her shoulder to see an elegantly costumed geisha shuffle in their direction while wearing the traditional slippers. "It seems like she knows us," Kasumi said standing next to Ryu.

"Ah! I knew it!" the geisha called out. Her red, painted lips spread into a wide smile.

"Knew what?" Ryu asked, moving to step in front of Kasumi so as to block her from view of the approaching woman.

"I'd have to be blind to not recognize the best tag-team from the DOA tournament," the geisha continued. She stood directly in front of Ryu, but her dark eyes were trained on Kasumi. "You probably don't recognize me without your boot print across my face. You knocked me out cold at the last tournament, Kasumi. You're my hero!"

"I, uh—" Kasumi was speechless. It wasn't like she was wearing a sign proclaiming her identity. She even had a scarf around her head keeping her hair from being visible. "Kokoro?"

Kokoro, the geisha, nodded demurely, channeling the grace of her practice. "And don't freak out, but the two of you are beautiful people. You're going to be noticed."

"Oh," Kasumi said. Her heart was sinking at the realization. Did that mean that Ryu was going to keep her shut away in the Himura's basement until it was time to leave?

"Don't worry, I've come to offer my services. Come with me and I can let your borrow one of my spare dresses and I'll do your hair and makeup," Kokoro said. She took hold of Kasumi's hand. "Even he won't recognize you when I'm done," she said angling her head towards Ryu.

"Doubtful," he mumbled. It might be a good idea for Kasumi to put on a disguise of sorts. Apparently, they weren't the only DOA contestants that had come to celebrate Chinese New Years in Kyoto with the intention of seeing Tina's concert. It was possible that Hayate or Ayane might attend, though they weren't particularly friendly with the American rockstar, they did know of Kasumi's friendship with her. "Okay, but we need to leave within the hour," Ryu agreed.

"He won't know what hit him," Kokoro whispered in Kasumi's ear. She led her away from the tourist section and toward a small residence within walking distance. "This wasn't originally a place for geisha to prepare themselves, but with the tourists being the main source of income for most geisha it was built a few decades ago."

The wooden and stone structure was a combination of modern and faux traditional architecture. Kasumi went downstairs with Kokoro and was shown a closet full of fancy kimonos and elegant obis. Kasumi gravitated to a dark purple and blue kimono with a butterfly pattern.

"Excellent choice," Kokoro said with a smile. "That one happens to be one of mine. You can have it as a gift." She picked up the kimono and laid it gently over Kasumi's arms. "There are different knots for the obi to represent the marital status of geisha," Kokoro said. "I wear mine this way to show that I am unmarried."

"Ryu and I are under the alias of a married couple," Kasumi said. "Mr. and Mrs. Toyota," she clarified. "How should I wear my obi?"

"In a simpler knot called the taiko musubi," Kokoro said. "Come with me, we'll get you changed," she said leading the dress-laided Kasumi into a dressing room with mirrors in the back of the building.

Kasumi allowed Kokoro to help her into the elegant kimono. She was a little bit concerned when Kokoro apologetically explained that she would need help undressing later. Kasumi knew exactly who that role would fall to and she decided that she'd worry about it later. She was sat on a stool as Kokoro applied the traditional makeup for a geisha. She also placed a wig upon Kasumi's head and styled it in the appropriate fashion.

When she was finally allowed to look at herself in the mirror, Kasumi didn't recognize the stranger staring back at her with wide golden eyes. She looked like her mother, but even more elegant. "I don't even recognize myself," Kasumi whispered.

"That was the point of this exercise," Kokoro said. She folded Kasumi's clothing inside of a small bag and hung it under Kasumi's dress. There was enough room to stash the flatted bag against her waist.

"I had hoped to visit the Fushimi Inari Shrine this evening. Would you care to join us?" Kasumi asked.

Kokoro's red lips spread in a benevolent smile. "Perhaps," she answered noncommittally.

They approached Ryu as he stood on one of the small bridges arching over the koi pond. As if sensing their advance he turned toward them. His eyebrows shot high into his forehead in an uncharacteristic display of surprise. His bright green eyes traveled up and down Kasumi's length as she stood before him. "I see you have the obi tied in the taiko musubi knot," he said in greeting.

Kasumi scowled, the expression lost under her piles of makeup. "I am a married woman," she answered. She wanted to know how the heck he knew anything about geisha clothing traditions.

"I bet he had to dress as a geisha once to evade an enemy," Kokoro whispered in her ear.

The visual was too much for Kasumi and burst into laughter, grateful for Kokoro's humor. The idea of Ryu Hayabusa facing off against enemies dressed as a geisha with the hair and makeup and the elegant kimono brought tears to Kasumi's eyes.

"Don't laugh so hard, wife. Your make-up will run," Ryu answered dryly. She could sense a slight trace of annoyance in his tone. Hayabusa didn't like being teased.

"I would be happy to accompany you to the Fushimi Inari Shrine," Kokoro said with a demur bow. "The tents outside of it for the New Years celebration will stretch great distances and the sale prices will prove great temptations." Kokoro reached for Kasumi's hands and held them in her own. "I know of a woman who makes the most amazing hapi robes! We simply must find you one!"

"My wife and I need to travel light," Ryu said, possessively laying a hand on Kasumi's shoulder.

"Of course," Kokoro agreed. "Lucky, a hapi robe takes up very little space," she said. "Come, let us arrive before the crowds."

* * *

**OoO**

However was it possible for two young women to bully a super ninja?

It was mid afternoon and cold outside, but there were still thousands of people milling about the temple area. There were countless tents aligning the path leading to the shrine. Ryu found himself walking the stone pathway around the Fushimi Inari Shrine with two geisha on his arms and pausing at almost every tent to examine the wares of the sellers. Thankfully, Kasumi wasn't known for her material possessions, but that didn't seem to be the case with Kokoro. The true geisha ordered many items from the sellers and had Ryu holding her bags.

Kasumi gave him a sympathetic look, but she didn't offer to help with the bags. They paused outside of the robe tent and Kasumi's eyes grew wide at the sight of the hapi robes made from various shades of silk.

He let her look over the clothing without protest. They had won enough money at the pachinko machine to justify a purchase or two at the celebration. The kimono Kokoro had given her was gorgeous. Blue and purple were certainly flattering colors on the kunoichi. However, the elaborate makeup and the fake black hair disturbed Hayabusa more than he wanted to admit. At least her eyes had been left alone. He almost preferred staying in the Himura's subterranean levels and seeing his friend as herself rather than wearing such a costume.

"What do you think?" Kasumi asked. She held up a silk robe of black with pink cherry blossoms across it. He nodded and she exchanged money with the seller and then handed Hayabusa the bag with the purchase. She gave an apologetic smile at adding to his load, but he didn't mind Kasumi's one article.

Up ahead of them a row over to their right, Ryu could hear a disturbance. The smile on Kasumi's face faded as she followed his gaze. "That's Hitomi," Kasumi whispered.

Another DOA tournament contestant?

"You two stay here and remain unseen," Ryu said. He set Kokoro's bags on the ground and took off on a run toward the commotion. He could see that Hitomi, the young German-Japanese girl that knew Hayate while he was an amnesiac was standing back to back to Brad's young apprentice Eliot.

Eliot caught Hayabusa's eye and gestured with his chin toward a trio of young men wearing black Western suits, with visible tattoos on the backs of their hands and up the sides of the necks, and the classic stance of a man ready for a fight at a moment's notice. Ryu recognized their ilk. They were members of the Yakuza.

He stepped calmly between Eliot and Hitomi and the three gang members. The gang member in the middle looked past Ryu to the two teenagers. "We aren't here to make trouble," he said.

"No?" Ryu asked. He didn't move.

"We're here to celebrate. If we wanted trouble we'd have rode in on motorcycles and ran over the pedestrians," the Yakuza on the left said with a sneer that pulled the piercing of his upper lip in a grotesque fashion.

"I saw them harassing a young man," Eliot said in his quiet voice.

"You saw me teasing my kid brother, Gaijin," the Yakuza in the middle said.

"What's that?" Hitomi asked. She pointed to the row behind them, where Kasumi and Kokoro were. There was a cloud of smoke that began to spread. There was no sound of explosion, just the smoke. The narrowed eyes of the Yakuza leader was evidence that he had nothing to do with it.

Ryu hurried back to Kasumi. He, the trio of Yakuza, Hitomi, and Eliot all stared a moment with their mouths slightly ajar. Two elaborately dressed geisha were exchanging blows with a group of four men. Kasumi knocked a remote device from one of the men's hands and it skidded toward Ryu's boots.

Kasumi's eyes met Ryu's. She mouthed the words, 'Bomb in the temple!'

Ryu tossed the device to Eliot and then turned on his heel and ran to the temple. He spotted familiar white blond hair running away. He ran to where the terrorist ran from and found the bomb. He recognized the type of bomb thankfully and disarmed it with little trouble. He tried to find Christie, almost certain the blond hair belonged to her, but she was long gone.

He returned to Kasumi and Kokoro's side. The four men were unconscious and slouched against the temple's pillars. Hitomi and Eliot were standing next to them, and the three Yakuza members were removing their belts and tying up the terrorists.

"Are you okay?" Ryu said, standing at Kasumi's side and whispering in her ear. She nodded. He looked over the shoulders of the Yakuza and saw Brad Wong approaching and tossed over his shoulder was the white blond haired woman in a slick leather catsuit.

"Look at what the cat brought in," Brad said dropped Christie's unconscious body next to the four secured terrorists. He raised his eyebrows at seeing the three gangsters. "I must be drunk. Did the Yakuza just stop a terrorist attack?"

"It's our city too," the Yakuza leader said with a shrug. "If you don't mind, we'd rather not be here when the authorities arrive." He and his two tattooed lackeys quickly left the scene.

Ryu pulled out the cell phone from Brad's front pocket and dialed Irene's number. She answered on the second ring. "Those terrorists from the Ice Festival tried to hit a temple in Kyoto. The local authorities are notified, but you might want to have your Japanese counterparts check into it." He hung up before she could say anything to him and handed the phone to Brad.

"These international calls of yours are racking up my phone bill, Hayabusa," Brad complained. He toed Christie's unconscious body. "I think she wanted to be captured." He looked over between Kokoro and Kasumi. "You and your companion might want to get out of here. I saw Hayate and Ayane a few rows over. We've got this."

Ryu took hold of Kasumi's arm, picked up the bag she'd dropped on the ground and they hurried toward the thickest part of the crowd. "You took them out wearing that?" Ryu asked quietly, bending near Kasumi's ear.

"I've fought in worse," she whispered back. "Are you okay?"

He glanced over his shoulder to see if there was any sign of Kasumi's siblings. "What do you mean? Of course I'm okay."

"Your face looked pained when you spoke on Brad's phone," Kasumi said, her voice laced with concern.

Did Kasumi notice his apprehension of speaking with his soon to be ex-wife? "It's nothing. I just needed to let an acquaintance know of a possible link between this thwarted attack and the one I saw a few months ago. Christie was involved with both and they involved the same sort of bomb and trigger," he explained.

He needed to decide if they would return to the Himuras or if he needed to find them another place to stay the night. The geisha outfit had been a great idea earlier, but now as they walked further from the temples and the festival she was drawing too much attention. And he was sick of her black hair. Instead of heading for the tailor shop he sent them on a detour while still within the midst of the celebratory crowd and headed toward the hotel district.

"How about we retire for the night Mrs. Toyota and order room service?" Ryu asked.

"As long as I can have a nice hot bubble bath I'll do whatever you want," Kasumi said with a smile.

Ryu shook his head in disbelief. Did she even know the way her words could be interpreted? "I'm sure I can arrange that."

"How about we stay in the hotel where Tina's band is located. Jann Lee gave me the information in his last email," Kasumi said. "They're on the ninth floor. He promised that he only told me of their location. It's a top secret to keep down the paparazzi and possible assassins."

"I think that's very convenient," Ryu answered.

* * *

**OoO**

Hayate still didn't understand why Ayane had been so insistent that they attend Chinese New Year in Kyoto that year. Normally, they didn't celebrate it. And if they did celebrate it they would do so in Tokyo which was much closer to their home. She had shoved an advertisement in his face for Tina's rock concert as proof that they needed to travel to Kyoto. She was certain that Kasumi would be drawn to the opportunity.

It was that possibility that made Hayate want to avoid Kyoto. He knew good and well that Kasumi and Tina were friends. They liked to team up on those ridiculous volleyball tournaments.

They'd been within the crowds outside of the Fushimi Inari Temple. The tents were countless and while there had been many beautiful kimonos and robes and other silky garments Ayane couldn't be any less interested. It was disappointing. Kasumi would have at least feigned enthusiasm.

He did a double-take. Was that Hitomi?

"There's trouble," Ayane said. She took off at a run.

He continued toward the direction he thought he saw Hitomi. It was definitely her. There were four men unconscious at her feet, a geisha at her side, and two other DOA contestants — the drunk chinaman that was always hitting on Kasumi and the blond British boy. For a moment he thought he sensed Ryu's familiar chi, but he didn't see him around. Though he did notice a man in the distance walking next to a geisha. The man attracted his attention momentarily, but Hayate dismissed him knowing that Ryu wouldn't be with a geisha.

"Hitomi?" Hayate asked, as he drew near. She looked up and smiled at him, her clear gray eyes focused on him and he felt his heart skip a beat at their intensity. "What are you doing here?"

"Enjoying the Chinese New Years," Hitomi said. She glanced down at the unconscious men at her feet. Hayate followed her gaze and did a double-take upon seeing Christie's prone form. "Or at least I was until these people showed up and tried to terrorize us with a bomb."

"A bomb? Did someone disarm it?" Hayate asked. He looked around for any sign of Ayane. She must have still been investigating.

"Ryu disarmed it, so we're safe now," Eliot said.

Hayate's attention went immediately to the British youth. "Ryu Hayabusa?"

Eliot's bright blue eyes flickered past Hayate to the geisha. "No, Officer Ryu. He was the police officer patrolling the area."

"Officer Ryu is very efficient at keeping our streets safe," the geisha agreed.

Hayate wasn't fooled. He turned ninety degrees to face the direction that the man and geisha had vanished. He couldn't see them amongst the thick throng of the crowd. The geisha outfit was a clever disguise. Hitomi tugged on his arm and had a concerned expression on her face. "I'm fine," he assured her. Even if it was Ryu and Kasumi it didn't matter. As long as they managed to avoid Ayane he could live with being in the same city. He just had to hope that they avoided the concert.

Ayane showed up moments later, walking alongside a small group of police officers. Hayate's eyes landed on the name badge of one of the men. Officer Ryu. Okay. Maybe it was a coincidence. Or maybe he really was just being too paranoid.

"Would you two like to join us? We were about to have dinner," Hitomi said with a friendly smile directed at both Hayate and Ayane.

Hayate glanced at his half-sister. The violet-haired kunoichi was scowling. He offered his arm to Hitomi. "We'd love to join you," he decided for the both of them.


End file.
